Top Philadelphia Flyers goalie prospect Egor Zavragin has yet to play for his KHL club, SKA St. Petersburg, in the early goings of the 2025-26 season.
Zavragin, 20, was on SKA's bench as an unused substitute in Monday's 3-2 loss to Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod, where 22-year-old Artemi Pleshkov drew the start and stopped 28 of 31 shots.
Zavragin's place on the bench as the backup goalkeeper was actually a promotion for him, too.
On Saturday, Sergei Ivanov started for SKA against the Shanghai Dragons, but was yanked after 35:18 after allowing six goals on 20 shots. Pleshkov replaced Ivanov and stopped all five shots he faced in the final 23:37 of the 7-4 loss.
This is all to say that, without Zavragin on the ice, SKA is disappointingly 0-2-0 on the season.
The KHL outfit already replaced Roman Rotenberg, Matvei Michkov's former coach, with NHL legend Igor Larionov moving behind the bench, and the roster features players like Joseph Blandisi (already suspended), former Flyers forward Mikhail Vorobyov, veteran center and former NHLer Andrei Loktionov, Nikolay Goldobin, Rocco Grimaldi, Trevor Murphy, and St. Louis Blues prospect Matvei Korotky.
If Larionov's poor luck continues, he may be forced to turn to Zavragin, which would be something certainly celebrated by the Flyers across the pond here in Philadelphia.
Flyers fans may recall how the 20-year-old former third-round pick dominated in the KHL last season under heavy expectations, going 20-14-3 across 43 games between SKA and HC Sochi and ripping off a 2.50 GAA, a .917 save percentage, and four shutouts.
In the Gagarin Cup playoffs, Zavragin was 1-2-0 with a 3.22 GAA and .913 save percentage across four games.
Plus, it certainly doesn't help Zavragin's case that only three of SKA's top 10 point-getters from last season remain.
Ivan Demidov, Alexander Nikishin, Arseniy Gritsyuk, Zakhar Bardakov, Tony DeAngelo, and, potentially, Evgeny Kuznetsov, have all left for the NHL, while only Sergei Plotnikov, Marat Khairullin, and Valentin Zykov remain.
If things don't continue to trend upwards for Zavragin, perhaps the Flyers will have other ideas on how to best develop their top goalie prospect that don't involve the KHL.
Just like Montreal Canadiens captain Nick Suzuki, the Pittsburgh Penguins captain, Sidney Crosby, is at the NHL Player Media Tour in Las Vegas, and Pierre Lebrun had the opportunity to speak to him. The TSN and Athletic Insider revisited comments the All-Star player made in February during the 4 Nations Face-Off, noting that he had grown up a Habs fan and would never forget the reception he received from the crowd in the Bell Center that night.
Never one to pull any punches, LeBrun asked the captain if he was trying to hint at something when he mentioned that he grew up a Habs fan. Unsurprisingly, Crosby said that he wasn’t, but he still appreciates the fact that the team wants him (LeBrun added he probably meant the fanbase).
LeBrun also tested the waters with Crosby’s longtime agent Pat Brisson, and while he believes his client should be competing for the Stanley Cup every year, it’s the player who has the ultimate say on his destiny.
Growing up a Habs fan or not, if the Pens’ captain were ever to decide he wants to move on, it would more than likely be to chase a Stanley Cup, and as much as the Canadiens’ faithful may wish to land number 87, Montreal is not one of the top Cup contenders right now. Crosby’s good friend Nathan MacKinnon plays on a team that’s arguably much closer to a Championship than the Habs are right now.
Besides, if Crosby were to request a trade, Kyle Dubas wouldn’t just give him away. Pittsburgh is on the verge of a rebuild and needs both young players and futures. The Canadiens have plenty of good young players, but how much can one sacrifice for a player who has just turned 38 years old? We’ve heard pundits on TV or radio advocating that it would make sense to trade Cole Caufield for Crosby, but I cannot see it. As good as Crosby is, two years of his talent versus at least five more years of a sniper who has yet to hit his ceiling?
It doesn’t make sense to me, despite how vital a good center is to a hockey team. Kent Hughes and Jeff Gorton have always been transparent about wanting to build a perennial contender. They wouldn’t just roll the dice on a trade that could make the team better for a very short while and then suffer a setback. If the Canadiens were ever to consider acquiring the long-time Pens’ captain, it would have to be at a very reasonable price, and it’s hard to imagine a world where no GM is ready to overpay for the three-time Cup Champion.
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A bad team is bad enough, but not knowing many of the UCLA players leads to an even emptier feeling for fans struggling to stay interested in the Bruins.
And all Early did was deliver one of his best pitching performances at any level.
Early, the No. 6 prospect in Boston’s system entering Tuesday, pitched five scoreless innings in the Red Sox’ 6-0 win, allowing just five hits and one walk with 11 strikeouts. Early showcased a filthy sweeping curveball and a mid-90s fastball while striking out 52 percent of the batters he faced.
A few fun facts about Don Aase, via The Boston Globe’s Peter Abraham: Aase never recorded more than eight strikeouts in a game after his debut, and was traded after the 1977 for a second baseman named Jerry Remy.
In the company of a Hall of Famer
According to Underdog’s Justin Havens, only three players in MLB history have allowed zero runs and one or fewer walks while striking out 10 or batters in their big-league debut.
One is Early. The second is Steve Woodard, who debuted for the Milwaukee Brewers in 1997. The third is Hall of Famer and 10-time All-Star Juan Marichal.
Ironically, all three players pitched for the Red Sox — Woodard in 2003 and Marichal in 1974.
An MLB first
According to Opta Stats, Early is the first pitcher in MLB’s modern era to have a debut in which he:
Threw at least 5.0 shutout innings
Walked one batter or fewer
Struck out more than half the batters he faced
It’s worth noting that the A’s don’t exactly have a cupcake lineup; while they’re in last place in the American League West, they rank fifth in all of baseball in team batting average (.254) and home runs (199).
Early’s highest strikeout total in the minors was 10, set during a Sept. 2 start for the Triple-A WooSox. He struck out 10 batters on two separate occasions at the University of Virginia, but never reached 11 Ks.
That’s all to say Early lit it up in his MLB debut — and earned a spot in the Red Sox’ rotation until further notice.
Fellow rookie Payton Tolle, who was called up two weeks ago, will get the start in Wednesday’s series finale vs. the A’s at 3:35 p.m. ET.
The Golden State Warriors star released a new book, titled “Shot Ready,” on Tuesday. The book features more than 100 photographs from his basketball journey as he dives into his philosophy for success.
Curry said he got the idea for the book when he was looking through old pictures with a couple of photographers. While he said it was great to relive some of the biggest moments throughout his career, it also inspired him to share his championship mindset.
“When I looked through, there were so many memories, lessons, philosophies, things that have helped me get through,” Curry said Wednesday during a “TODAY” interview with Savannah Guthrie and Craig Melvin. “Not only to inspire myself to keep going, because I still have a lot more to accomplish on the court, but to kind of go through and highlight some of the things that I’ve learned.”
Curry’s “shot ready” mindset is clear on the court, as his 4,058 career 3-pointers are far and away the most in NBA history. Beyond basketball, he believes it’s an attitude that extends to all walks of life.
“Only worrying about the process and not the result is what being ‘shot ready’ is,” he said. “You know, 10 fingers, 10 toes to the basket, but that’s a philosophy that’s not just basketball.”
Curry didn’t get his four NBA championships, two NBA MVPs, 11 All-Star selections and place on the NBA 75th Anniversary Team alone. The father of four credits his wife, Ayesha, and the rest of his family for believing in him when others overlooked him.
“You’ve got to have people around you that see the best in you, as well, and I’ve had those people in my life, and that’s something I get to share throughout the book,” he said.
Steph and Ayesha are keeping plenty busy while raising their children. On top of Steph’s “TODAY” interview, Ayesha got to co-host with Jenna Bush Hager on “Jenna & Friends.”
Still, the couple is able to put family first while excelling in their respective fields.
“It’s a tough balancing act,” he said. “I don’t even know if ‘balance’ is a real, accomplishable thing, but we’re excited. We’re in love. We’re enjoying it.”
When asked about what he plans to do when he finally retires, Curry promised he won’t leave the game. Whether it’s coaching or another role, he says he will find a place in basketball after he is done playing.
“I see what these coaches go through in the league, so I understand how hard the job is. For me though, it’s about figuring a way to have an influence in the game, to give back to it the way that so many people have poured into me. Whether that’s a skill development thing, a consultant thing, I don’t know what it is, but I know I’m going to be a part of the game where anybody can reach out to me.”
Before Curry jumps into his future plans, he still has scores to settle on the court. The future Basketball Hall of Famer is gearing up to enter his 17th season, and he will kick it off when the Warriors visit LeBron James, Luka Doncic and the Los Angeles Lakers in the return of NBA on NBC on Tuesday, Oct. 21.
“Year 17 sounds insane,” he said. “I’m hyped for it.”
The Golden State Warriors star released a new book, titled “Shot Ready,” on Tuesday. The book features more than 100 photographs from his basketball journey as he dives into his philosophy for success.
Curry said he got the idea for the book when he was looking through old pictures with a couple of photographers. While he said it was great to relive some of the biggest moments throughout his career, it also inspired him to share his championship mindset.
“When I looked through, there were so many memories, lessons, philosophies, things that have helped me get through,” Curry said Wednesday during a “TODAY” interview with Savannah Guthrie and Craig Melvin. “Not only to inspire myself to keep going, because I still have a lot more to accomplish on the court, but to kind of go through and highlight some of the things that I’ve learned.”
Curry’s “shot ready” mindset is clear on the court, as his 4,058 career 3-pointers are far and away the most in NBA history. Beyond basketball, he believes it’s an attitude that extends to all walks of life.
“Only worrying about the process and not the result is what being ‘shot ready’ is,” Curry said. “You know, 10 fingers, 10 toes to the basket, but that’s a philosophy that’s not just basketball.”
Curry didn’t secure his four NBA championships, two NBA MVPs, 11 All-Star selections and a place on the NBA 75th Anniversary Team alone. The father of four credits his wife, Ayesha, and the rest of his family for believing in him when others overlooked him.
“You’ve got to have people around you that see the best in you, as well, and I’ve had those people in my life, and that’s something I get to share throughout the book,” Curry said.
Steph and Ayesha are keeping themselves plenty busy while raising their children. On top of Steph’s “TODAY” interview, Ayesha co-hosted with Jenna Bush Hager on “Jenna & Friends.”
Still, the couple puts family first while excelling in their respective fields.
“It’s a tough balancing act,” Curry said. “I don’t even know if ‘balance’ is a real, accomplishable thing, but we’re excited. We’re in love. We’re enjoying it.”
When asked about what he plans to do when he finally retires, Curry promised he won’t leave the game. Whether it’s coaching or another role, he says he will find a place in basketball after he is done playing.
“I see what these coaches go through in the league, so I understand how hard the job is,” Curry said. “For me though, it’s about figuring a way to have an influence in the game, to give back to it the way that so many people have poured into me. Whether that’s a skill development thing, a consultant thing, I don’t know what it is, but I know I’m going to be a part of the game where anybody can reach out to me.”
Before Curry jumps into his future plans, he still has scores to settle on the court. The future Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Famer is gearing up to enter his 17th NBA season, and he will tip it off when the Warriors visit LeBron James, Luka Doncic and the Los Angeles Lakers in the return of NBA on NBC on Tuesday, Oct. 21.
“Year 17 sounds insane,” Curry said. “I’m hyped for it.”
There was an awful lot of booing over the weekend. Donald Trump was booed at Flushing Meadows, a short drive from where he was born. A rather bewildered Australian prime minister was booed in Western Sydney – never a good sign for a Labor politician. There were howls of derision over the umpiring on Friday night. And the Crows crowd didn’t stop booing for three hours at the Adelaide Oval.
In that instance, it was not only puerile and incomprehensible, but self-defeating: it helped perpetuate the siege mentality in which Collingwood thrives.
Teoscar Hernández points skyward as he heads home after hitting his first home run of the evening. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
It was picture day at Dodger Stadium on Tuesday, one of those quaint baseball traditions that has endured long past its usefulness.
So the team set up three rows of aluminum risers in shallow center field and the players, wearing impossibly white uniforms, filed out of the clubhouse just before 3 p.m., passing up batting practice to pose for the cameras. For a sport that thrives on routine, the afternoon had a unique last-day-of-school vibe.
“It's a weird day," manager Dave Roberts agreed.
But picture day also serves to bring the end of the season into tighter focus since it usually happens in the final three weeks. And the players who climb those risers are the ones who will decide the team’s postseason fate.
That was especially true for the Dodgers, who rode another splendid pitching performance — this one from Emmet Sheehan — to a 7-2 victory over the Colorado Rockies. Sheehan, bidding for a spot in the playoff rotation, was backed by four homers, including a pair of solo shots from Teoscar Hernández, who had his first three-hit night in more than a month.
The win, the team’s third in a row, coupled with San Diego’s loss to Cincinnati, expanded the Dodgers’ lead in the National League West to two games over the second-place Padres with just 17 left to play.
The Dodgers’ starting pitching is already in postseason form, posting a 1.41 ERA over the past five games. On Tuesday it was Sheehan’s turn on the mound and he set down the first 15 Rockies in order, becoming the third Dodger starter in four games to take a no-hitter into the sixth inning.
He wound up scattering three hits and a walk over seven innings, striking out nine to earn his fourth victory in five decisions. The win was also Sheehan’s fourth victory in as many appearances against Colorado.
Roberts said his team’s starting pitchers are all competing to one-up each other, giving the significance of the games now.
“They're feeding off one another,” he said. “The pitchers are of the mind that these are very, very important games. It's kind of the playoff mentality. The catchers are calling games in that vein.
“The defense has been really focused getting off the baseball. There's a heightened level of focus across the board.”
That even spread to the offense, said Mookie Betts, whose two-run home run in the third extended his streak of reaching base safely to 15 straight games.
Mookie Betts is very happy after his two-run homer in the third inning. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
“It's really neat being on this side,” Betts, who had multiple RBIs for a fourth straight game, said of watching the Dodger pitchers work. “If you kind of take a step back and look at it, there's a lot of teams that would ask for something like this. Those guys give us opportunity to win every day.
“It's really important for us as on the offensive side not to take that for granted.”
Although the Dodgers entered Tuesday second to last in the majors with an average of 3.14 runs a game in September, against Colorado starter Germán Márquez (3-13), whose ERA (6.31) looks more like a mortgage rate, they ran out to a 5-0 lead after five innings. As a result the focus turned to Sheehan, who needed just 59 pitches to cruise through five perfect innings, striking out five.
“I probably knew,” Sheehan, pitching on the 60th anniversary of Sandy Koufax’s perfect game, said when asked if he was aware he was more than halfway to matching that. “But I was definitely not thinking about it.”
The right-hander said he tried to cross the Rockies up by moving away from his fastball and going with a slider to the glove side instead.
“I felt like I was executing the slider pretty well,” he said. “The more I throw it, the easier it gets to get it to that spot. It's an important pitch for me.”
Kyle Karros ended the suspense when he lined Sheehan’s first pitch of the sixth inning over a leaping Max Muncy at third for a single. Two more singles brought Karros around to score, ending the shutout as well.
Still Sheehan (6-3) was more than good enough to win for the fourth time in five decisions, lowering his ERA to 3.32 and forcing his way into the conversation over a role on the postseason roster.
“He's unflappable,” Roberts said. “He knows he's talented and he knows how to execute pitches. He's got good stuff. No moment is too big for him. So I can't speak to what role, but I know that he's a viable option for us now and going forward.”
Tuesday’s win also left Sheehan unbeaten on picture day, something he nearly skipped as the scheduled starting pitcher.
“I wasn't going go out there,” he said. “But I was like, I missed the last two. I gotta be out there.”
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Kyle Schwarber hit his 50th home run of the season and Ranger Suárez struck out a career-high 12 over six shutout innings to lead the Philadelphia Phillies to a 9-3 win over the New York Mets on Tuesday night.
The Phillies have won the first two games of the four-game series and lead the NL East by nine games over the Mets.
Suárez (12-6) turned in another terrific outing.
The left-hander tossed one-hit ball as he lowered his ERA to 2.77 and showed again why the Phillies believe he can be a No. 1 starter in the postseason with ace Zack Wheeler sidelined due to complications from a blood clot.
Schwarber’s three-run shot off reliever Justin Hagenman in the seventh gave the Phillies a 7-1 lead and made him the first National League player to reach 50 homers this season. Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh leads the majors with 53.
The fan favorite designated hitter came out of the dugout for a curtain call for a crowd roaring “MVP! MVP!” as “50 Schwarbombs” flashed on the big screen.
Suárez struck out Juan Soto and Pete Alonso in the first inning and threw 60 strikes out of his 99 total pitches. Suárez has allowed just one earned run and struck out 29 in his last 24 innings over four starts.
Harrison Bader was moved to the leadoff spot with NL batting leader Trea Turner sidelined and went 3 for 5 with a solo homer. Bader, who played for the Mets last season, had three hits against them for the second straight game.
Mark Vientos homered for New York, and Juan Soto got his 30th stolen base for the first 30-30 season of his career.
Key moment
Otto Kemp and Bader hit consecutive homers off struggling Mets starter Sean Manaea (1-3) in the second inning for a 4-0 lead.
Key stats
Schwarber remains within striking distance of the team season record of 58 homers set by Ryan Howard in 2006.
Up next
The Mets send RHP Clay Holmes (11-7, 3.61 ERA) to the mound against Phillies LHP Cristopher Sánchez (12-5, 2.60 ERA) on Wednesday.
Aaron Judge provided the one bright spot for the Yankees on Tuesday night in The Bronx.
In the first inning of what would ultimately be a 12-2 loss to the Tigers, Judge launched a one-out solo homer that not only gave the Yankees an early 1-0 lead, but gave him career home run 359, surpassing the great Yogi Berra for fifth-most in franchise history.
"The last few years with what Aaron’s done in this league and the seasons he’s had, he’s been in some rarified air," manager Aaron Boone said after the game. "There’s been some impressive lists or names he’s next to, but when you see a career list like that with this organization and where he is right now in the center of it, it’s pretty awesome."
The Yankees have had the same top five home run hitters in their franchise since Aug. 7, 1957. Babe Ruth (659), Mickey Mantle (536), Lou Gehrig (493), Joe DiMaggio (361) and Berra (358) made up that list for more than 50 years, but now Judge's name is at the top with those Yankees legends.
When he was asked about it after the game, Judge said his first thought was on what it meant for Tuesday's game, but he appreciates the company he has joined.
"Passing Yogi is pretty special. All-time great Yankee. What he meant to this organization, even when he was done playing, being around, the stories we heard. He's the definition of a true Yankee," he said. "Any time you're on a list with a guy like that, it's pretty remarkable."
As remarkable as the accomplishment is, the feeling after the loss was less so. The Yankees got out to an early 2-0 lead but were in position to potentially win the game entering the seventh inning tied at 2-2. But the combination of Fernando Cruz and Mark Leiter Jr. allowed nine runs without recording an out, and put Tuesday's game out of reach.
Despite the performance, Judge believes in the Yankees' bullpen and chalks it up to a bad game.
"It's just not going our way," he said. "Especially the guys we brought out of the bullpen, I trust every single one of those guys. They've gotten a lot of big outs for us, especially Cruzer and Leiter. Just didn't get it done there and put us in a bad spot. But we just gotta show up tomorrow, do our thing, and we'll be where we need to be."
The Yankees continue their three-game set with the Tigers on Wednesday, hoping to draw even in the series and stay within reach of the Blue Jays for the AL East crown.
.@martinonyc joins @mmargaux8 after the Yankees' loss to the Tigers to discuss the issues with the Yankees' bullpen and Aaron Judge passing Yogi Berra for fifth on the Yankees' all-time home run list: pic.twitter.com/cAWepuo4Pu
KHL Forward Supports Flyers' Aleksei KolosovAhead of what will be his first full training camp with the Philadelphia Flyers, top goalie prospect Aleksei Kolosov continues to draw support from his peers from all over the globe.
