MONTREAL (AP) — Jean-Gabriel Pageau scored 3:14 into overtime, rookie Matthew Schaefer had two goals in a 55-second span in the second period and the New York Islanders rallied to beat the Montreal Canadiens 4-3 on Thursday night.
Schaefer has 18 goals to surpass Denis Potvin for the most by a rookie defenseman in team history. Schaefer, selected first overall in last year’s draft, also moved past Phil Housley for the most goals in NHL history by an 18-year-old defenseman.
Islanders captain Anders Lee, skating in his 900th game, also scored and Ilya Sorokin made 21 saves to help New York win its third straight. Sorokin improved to 7-0-2 in his career against Montreal.
The Canadiens' Noah Dobson scored two goals in his first game against his former team. Cole Caufield scored his team-leading 33rd goal for Montreal in the third period and Samuel Montembeault made 23 saves.
Dobson, who scored at even strength and on the power play, spent his first six NHL seasons with the Islanders before being traded last June to Montreal for Emil Heineman and two 2025 first-round draft picks.
It was the first game back for both teams following the NHL’s 19-day pause for the Milan Cortina Olympic Games.
Dobson took advantage of a poor line change by the Islanders to open the scoring for Montreal in the first period. The Canadiens defenseman took a stretch pass from Lane Hutson before firing a wrist shot from the left circle that beat Sorokin to the glove side.
Dobson has 12 goals, one shy of his single-season high set with the Islanders in both the 2021-22 and 2022-23 seasons.
Up next
Islanders: At the Columbus Blue Jackets on Saturday.
Canadiens: Host the Washington Capitals on Saturday.
Without whom none of this would be possible… | NHLI via Getty Images
Noah Dobson scored two fist-pumping goals in his first meeting against his old team, but Matthew Schaefer scored two of his own to erase those, then the Islanders tied the game late with a sixth attacker, which set the table for Canadiens-killer J-G Pageau to score the OT winner in Montreal.
The 4-3 win gives the Isles a two-point boost coming out of the Olympic break, in a game that could’ve slipped away from them after an unimpressive second period (until Schaefer’s late heroics) and a power play goal gave the Habs a 3-2 lead midway through the third.
The Islanders hardly touched the puck in OT through two long but mostly unthreatening shifts, before Simon Holmstrom won a faceoff board battle with, um, Dobson, and sent Pageau off to the races to settle down a wobbly puck just in time.
The Isles had a decent start and though they opened scoring in the first period, but Marc Gatcomb’s goal was called back for offside, with Schaefer the glaringly guilty party. That seemed to stunt the Isles’ energy or give the Canadiens a boost, because play started to tilt after that.
Dobson’s opener at 12:11 wasn’t a particularly threatening play — though Schaefer screened Ilya Sorokin on the shot after stumbling from a netfront battle — but it followed a sequence of increasing, sustained Montreal control.
The Islanders made it to the first intermission only trailing one, but they didn’t rebound in the second. Cole Caulfield had a bid to make it 2-0 immediately waved off due to a kicking motion.
This play was called "no goal" due to a distinct kicking motion by Cole Caufield. pic.twitter.com/vGxWxkxBhh
Scott Mayfield took the first penalty of the game, and Dobson converted on that power play to give the Canadiens a real 2-0 lead, one that seemed imposing at the time, based on how things were going.
But, well, you know: anything Dobber can do, Schaefer can do better.
The Islanders got the break they needed with a nearly full two-minute 5-on-3. It looked like they would need every second of it before Schaefer finally broke the ice with a wicked shot through the defender’s legs and over the glove. That got the Islanders on the board, though they couldn’t do anything with the remaining half minute of 5-on-4.
MATTHEW SCHAEFER WITH TWO GOALS LESS THAN A MINUTE APART! 🤯
However, thankfully, Schaefer wasn’t done. Less than a minute later, he did one of his regroups, calling for the puck back at their blueline, flying through the neutral zone, orbiting behind the net, changing directions to shake the checkers and then whipping another shot through a screen to tie it at 2-2.
Most goals by an 18-year-old defenseman in NHL history.
So they were back even, a new game headed into the third period. They’d just need a solid start and a better 20 minutes and…oh. Simon Holmstrom took a penalty 18 seconds in, one of two correct-but-soft tripping calls the Isles would take.
They killed off the first one convincingly. They killed most of the second one (seven minutes later) with the same approach, but a squib through the crease left an open net for Caulfield to slam it home and give the Habs the lead with 10:49 to go in the period.
Things looked stark, but for once the Islanders pulled the goalie during a proper flow into the zone. Their top guys maintained possession despite some close calls from good defensive pressure from the Habs. Just when it seemed like that would all be for naught on that shift, Bo Horvat’s last-gasp shot from the high slot deflected in off the chest of captain Anders Lee, playing his 900th regular season NHL game.
We were mercifully spared a shootout thanks to Pageau finishing the game 1:46 into OT. The Canadiens won the faceoffs and controlled the puck up to that point, but they didn’t really threaten thanks to patient positioning from the Isles.
When Pageau won the next draw in the D-zone to the right wing, Holmstrom won his battle and chipped a puck off the boards to send his running mate in. The puck seemed to be wobbling all night, as if the [telecom or bank or whatever] Cent(e)r(e) ice care team took the entire Olympics off, and Pageau indeed had to settle this one before depositing it between Sam Monte…Monteba…Monte-not-gonna-work-here-much-longer’s legs.
Holmstrom beat Noah Dobson on the wall before making an incredible pass to Pageau for the game-winner 👀 pic.twitter.com/hX0IpZoVqd
Victor Wembanyama steps out of the visitors’ locker room, hunches through the tunnel, and Barclays Center greets him with a shriek. A mass circles the east end of the court as the Alien starts to warm up. Rarely is a nickname — bland it may be — this fitting. Wemby clutches a basketball, balancing on one leg while the physiotherapist pokes and prods him; they then begin a series of strange-looking stretches targeting muscles you haven’t heard of. Hushed fascination overtakes the crowd. It really does feel like a ticketed exhibition at Area 51; I snap the best photo I can get, proof that my work is occasionally as cool as my friends think it is.
On the west end of the court, Josh Minott and Ochai Agbaji warm up in front of empty seats. In pregame, Jordi Fernández gives his longest answer of the season, promising a bright future for the Brooklyn Nets as directly as he can: “We really like where we are. You know, we have a process and a plan in place … and everybody should feel the excitement of the next step. It’s a big 25 games for everybody, and a big, big, big summer.”
The media room is packed with national reporters, braving the slush to observe the Alien up close. Some of them ask me how I feel about Brooklyn’s rookie class. But before getting nerdy, I express my gratitude: The rookies have made this season interesting at the very least, even exciting at times.
Danny Wolf made a couple threes on Thursday night, finishing with 14/5/2, but Nolan Traore was once again the most impressive of the pack. He put up 13/2/3, only turned it over once, and consistently put pressure on the paint…
Nolan rejects, then uses the screen, then uses the re-screen and engages the big.
Nolan is 3-of-8 from two tonight, but three of his misses have been tipped in, in this exact manner vs. drop. More positive plays: pic.twitter.com/8JBffyk4Ae
Brooklyn did not wilt against Wemby. They scored 54 points in the paint, their highest total since a February 9 victory over the Chicago Bulls. San Antonio threatened to break the game open in the first quarter, but Day’Ron Sharpe, who reached a double-double, came off the bench and scored a quick seven points. Nic Claxton subbed back in and followed his lead, reaching double-figures before the half.
Jordi Fernández knew they would drown if not for the adjustment: “We go out there and shoot three threes and seven mid-range shots in the first quarter. So that’s just lack of intention and concentration … but then after that, you know, the second quarter we did better and coming out in the third, we did good.”
Michael Porter Jr. single-handedly kept Brooklyn within striking distance in that third quarter, maneuvering around Wemby for three quick layups…
Then, at long last, he found the 3-point stroke that’s been AWOL in February, hitting three straight. Porter Jr. scored 17 points in the period, finishing with 25/14/1 and six turnovers on just 9-of-22 shooting. Still, an improvement.
Alas, the Spurs put their foot down after Porter Jr.’s little outburst. The Nets were trailing by six. Blink. The Nets were trailing by 26. Brooklyn native Julian Champagnie led the way with 26 points, but it was a total team effort, as the West’s #2 seed showed no signs of fatigue having flown in from Toronto the night before.
Unperturbed by every run the Nets made, San Antonio whipped the ball around the court, posting an incredible 36:9 turnover:assist ratio and shooting 39.5% from three. It was the exact basketball Brooklyn hopes to play, right down to the franchise-changing superstar in the middle of it, though Wemby scored just 12 points himself.
“I thought we fought in that third quarter, cut it under ten, made it a game,” said Jordi Fernández. “We did a lot of things better, you know, fighting for long, longer rebounds, took the challenge, but then couldn’t close it. So, you have to play very well against a team like this, one of the best teams in the NBA.”
Egor Dëmin, perhaps unsurprisingly, was not one of the Nets who barreled toward the rim on Thursday. He shot just 2-of-3 from the floor, and was pulled early in the first quarter after being “involved in a few defensive mistakes,” per Fernández. But it wasn’t all bad for the young Russian, just a little odd: He did post a career-high nine assists with just one turnover.
Brooklyn’s head coach had a succinct message postgame: “Be more aggressive, and find those shots early, pushing. Obviously the unselfishness. I really like it … So, gotta watch the film again. In a perfect world, probably, I need him to take more than two threes and more than three shots.”
Jordi Fernández knows that we’re waiting for the summer. As opponents keep rolling through Barclays Center with ease, he might be counting down the days too. But until then, the Nets are not quite a basketball team trying to win games, but a collection of kids trying to — hold on, Spurs Head Coach Mitch Johnson came up with the perfect metaphor in his pregame.
“It’s hard to ask a 19-year-old to help another 19-year-old. It’s like asking a bunch of kids learning how to swim to make sure the other one doesn’t drown.”
Final Score: San Antonio Spurs 126, Brooklyn Nets 110
Milestone Watch
Dëmin joins Reece Beekman (4/8/25) as the only Nets rookies with at least nine dimes and under two giveaways since Marcus Williams(!) (3/9/07).
With 14/11/4 Day’Ron Sharpe logged his 19th career double-double, and his fifth this season. (Had a career-high six in 2023-24.)
After a couple of later games — the Pelicans win over the Jazz and the Kings over the Mavericks — the Tankathon rankings are looking up for the Nets. They are now one game out of second and two games out of first.
Next Up
<p>Luiza Moraes/Getty Images</p><br>
It’s a quick turnaround, as the Brooklyn Nets ship up to Boston for the second night of a back-to-back. Tip-off against the Celtics is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET.
OTTAWA, Ontario (AP) — Dylan Larkin scored in his second goal of game at 1:50 of overtime, John Gibson made 26 saves and the Detroit Red Wings beat the Ottawa Senators 2-1 on Thursday night.
Larkin beat Linus Ullmark with a backhander in the tiebreaker.
Ottawa captain Brady Tkachuk opened the scoring in the first period. Ullmark stopped 18 shots.
Detroit tied it at 1 on a power play early in the second when Lucas Raymond fed Larkin at the side of the net for a one-timer past Ullmark.
Just over two minutes later, Simon Edvinsson stepped into Tkachuk, with the Senators forward’s stick bouncing up and hitting him in the face. Tkachuk dropped to the ice, and Dylan Cozens jumped to his captain’s defense. Edvinsson and Cozens were both sent to the box.
Tkachuk returned to the ice before play resumed and skated to the penalty box to confront Edvinsson, drawing a 10-minute misconduct. Once in the box, Tkachuk continued to voice his displeasure.
ATLANTA, GA - FEBRUARY 26: Bilal Coulibaly #0 of the Washington Wizards drives to the basket during the game against the Atlanta Hawks on February 26, 2026 at State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Georgia. 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 Joe Boatman/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
The Washington Wizards lost to the Atlanta Hawks on Thursday, 126-96.
The first half of this game was tough to watch. Washington allowed Atlanta to head into halftime with a 76-56 lead. I get that the Wizards aren’t going to be very good this season. But that margin and the total number of points the Hawks scored is embarrassing.
Now, there’s something else I wanted to point out today. The Hawks wore their black and gold City Edition uniforms which were coincidentally the same colors as the Wizards’ black and gold City Edition uniforms. Unless you are someone who digs deep into each team’s alternate uniforms, some viewers may have very well had a tougher time figuring out who the Wizards and Hawks were.
Anyway, Washington was able to keep things relatively even in the third quarter, but the Hawks went back on another rampage in the fourth.
Corey Kispert, now with the Hawks, scored 33 points to show some revenge on his old team. He also made 6-of-11 of his three point shots. For the Wizards, Will Riley, Jaden Hardy and Justin Champagnie all scored 14 each to co-lead the team.
The Wizards now head back home to face off against the Toronto Raptors for their next game on Saturday. Tip off is at 7 p.m. ET. See you then.
MONTREAL — Maybe the first game back after three weeks was always going to be about which team could shake the cobwebs off quicker. Certainly, neither the Islanders nor Canadiens were anything like the best versions of themselves Thursday night.
At points, one would have been forgiven for assuming all 40 players on the ice had just gotten back from Milan, as the hockey took on a jet-lagged and disjointed quality.
Matthew Schaefer, though, woke the Islanders right up, earning himself another highlight and another pair of records, even as everyone has already lost count of both. As the night wore on, the Islanders found their urgency, they found their resiliency and they came away with a 4-3 win over the Canadiens on Jean-Gabriel Pageau’s backhand 1:46 into overtime.
“I have that feeling this year,” Pageau said. “When we get down, we always have a chance to come back.”
This was not pretty hockey. Both teams looked disconnected at points. The Islanders missed plenty of passes, they looked a step slow at times. So too did the Canadiens.
This turned into a fun one anyway, largely because of the two defensemen who are so central to the story of this Islanders’ season. Going into the third period, Noah Dobson had two goals against his old club, Schaefer had two goals for his new club and it was anyone’s game.
New York Islanders center Jean-Gabriel Pageau (44) celebrates his game winning goal against the Montreal Canadiens in during overtime at Bell Centre. David Kirouac-Imagn Images
The Canadiens, though, struck first in the third, with Cole Caufield scoring off Ivan Demidov’s cross-crease feed on the power play for a 3-2 lead at 9:11 of the third.
The Islanders spent the rest of the third pressing, but it took until there was 1:41 to go and they were skating at six-on-five for Anders Lee to finally tip Bo Horvat’s shot in and tie the game at three, sending his 900th career game into overtime.
The Islanders barely touched the puck for the first 1:23 of overtime, but Pageau was sprung by Simon Holmstrom off a defensive zone faceoff win and poked his backhand past Samuel Montembeault.
“That’s fun hockey,” said Schaefer, who wasted no time reminding the NHL of his brilliance with a pair of goals 55 seconds apart, the latter a brilliant solo effort, to erase a 2-0 deficit at the end of the second period. “I thought we fought so hard. It’s so fun playing with this group of guys. I love coming to the rink when all the boys are going to war.”
Jean-Gabriel Pageau (44) celebrates after his winning goal with teammates Simon Holmstrom (10), Casey Cizikas, second from left, and Matthew Schaefer (48) during overtime NHL hockey game action in Montreal, Thursday, Feb. 26, 2026. AP
Dobson, facing the club that dealt him away over the summer, scored his pair of goals first: a left-circle blast while the Islanders were caught in the middle of a change, then a slap shot from the top of the zone on the power play. The two points mean he’s already passed his total from a year ago, a sign of how happily his marriage with the Canadiens has gone so far.
It wasn’t so long ago that Dobson was the next big thing on defense for the Islanders. Schaefer, though, has made that easy to forget.
With the Islanders skating five-on-three, he scored from the top of the slot to cut the lead in half. When the power play ended, he went and scored one of his more ridiculous goals of the season, skating behind the net, going around it, pulling up before the blue line, cutting back and lashing a shot from atop the right circle. By the end of the sequence, according to MSG, Schaefer had skated over 270 feet.
Ilya Sorokin makes a save on Nick Suzuki during second-period of the Islanders’ overtime road win over the Canadiens. AP
“I didn’t think we shot enough early in the game,” Schaefer said.
Exactly in line with what Patrick Roy was thinking.
“I never doubt his IQ,” the head coach said. “If there’s something I’ve seen pretty fast, it’s that.”
The first goal tied Schaefer for both the franchise lead in goals by a rookie defenseman and the all-time lead in goals for an 18-year-old defenseman. The second gave him both records, passing Denis Potvin and Phil Housley, respectively.
Just another Thursday for Schaefer.
And just another night to leave one wondering where the Islanders might be without him.
SCOTTSDALE, ARIZONA - FEBRUARY 26: Heliot Ramos #17 of the San Francisco Giants greets his teammates in the dugout after hitting a home run during the fifth inning of the spring training game against the Colorado Rockies at Scottsdale Stadium on February 26, 2026 in Scottsdale, Arizona. (Photo by Mike Christy/Getty Images) | Getty Images
For the second straight day, the San Francisco Giants engaged in a Cactus League slugfest. And for the second straight day, the power they provided was surpassed by the power they allowed. This time, it wasn’t quite as close as on Wednesday, as the Giants fell to the Colorado Rockies 11-3.
The good was extremely encouraging, and the bad was extremely concerning. So let’s begin with the bad, and get it out of the way as quickly as we can.
Hayden Birdsong, who opened up the spring for the Giants a week ago and only retired one batter, made his second appearance of the preseason. In the most basic statistical sense, it went better this time around. But in reality? Honestly, it might have been worse.
Birdsong entered in the fifth inning, and the first batter he faced — non-roster invitee designated hitter Chad Stevens — took him deep. In Birdsong’s defense, it was the epitome of a Spring Training, humid desert home run: it left the bat at just 99.1 mph, it traveled a mere 365 feet, and, per Statcast, it had an expected batting average of only .170. Were this a Major League game, it probably would have been an out that we didn’t think too much about … unless the Rockies were hosting the game, that is.
He recovered against the next batter, blowing a 97.1-mph fastball past center fielder Jake McCarthy in a 2-2 count.
Then the hiccups started again. Catcher Brett Sullivan had a hard-hit double, and scored on an even harder-hit single by shortstop Cole Carrigg. Right fielder Jordan Beck singled, and then Birdsong’s defense both helped him out and hurt him. Luis Arráez committed an error on what should have been a fielder’s choice, allowing third baseman Kyle Karros — son of Eric — aboard, but then Patrick Bailey threw out Beck for the second out of the inning. Birdsong, slightly rattled, engaged in an eight-pitch battle with first baseman Charlie Condon, which resulted in a walk, before retiring second baseman Adael Amador to end the inning.
Allowing three runs in one inning is emphatically better than allowing five runs in a third of an inning, but the bad results felt mere emblematic of the performance this time around, with Birdsong throwing just 19 of 32 pitches for strikes, and having a few uncompetitive encounters. Critically, after Tony Vitello expressed optimism about Birdsong’s stuff following Saturday’s rough-up, things were quite different on Thursday. This time, the manager made no attempt to put any window dressing on a bad game.
Vitello on Birdsong:
"I just don't think he came away throwing the ball as well as he can. He's certainly got good stuff — that's kind of been beat up ad nauseam — but I think as far as watching body language, presence, how he threw the ball, I think he's capable of better."
The spring is still young, but unfortunately, the early returns suggest that Birdsong has not been able to fix what doomed his season a year ago. It appears this may not be the quick fix we were all looking for.
San Francisco’s other young, ultra-electric arm in this game was better than Birdsong, though certainly not great. Blade Tidwell got the start and set down the side in order in the first, albeit narrowly avoiding the only-in-Scottsdale home run that damaged Birdsong’s ERA. The second inning was a different story for Tidwell, who was sitting around 96 and, unlike most of the team’s starters this spring, did not lose velocity in his second frame.
He lost effectiveness, though. Tidwell opened the inning with a six-pitch walk in which all six pitches were outside of the zone. That run immediately scored when Karros scorched a triple at 108.1 mph, making it the fourth hardest-hit ball of the entire game. The next batter, Condon, one-upped Karros with the second-hardest hit ball of the game: a 111.2-mph RBI single.
While that wasn’t ideal, Tidwell’s composure most certainly was. Despite having given up a pair of runs, and despite there being a runner on base with no outs, and despite a flurry of hard contact, Tidwell settled in and set down the next three batters on just six pitches, without throwing a single ball.
I wasn’t at the game, and it wasn’t televised, so I can’t speak to how Tidwell or Birdsong looked. But Tidwell’s composure to bounce back in that inning, juxtaposed against Vitello’s comments about Birdsong’s body language, certainly paint a picture for us.
While those were the most notable pitchers to take the bump for the Giants, there were a trio of other arms who joined Birdsong in giving up long balls. Lefty Reiver Sanmartin pitched the fourth and gave up a solo shot to Condon, which left the bat at 102.8 mph. Non-roster invitee Wilkin Ramos handled the sixth, and it did not go well for him. He ceded a 105-mph, 410-foot dinger to Ryan Ritter on the first of 28 pitches that he needed to get through the inning. He gave up two walks, two singles, a double, and two more runs before mercifully getting through the frame.
Prospect and NRI Trent Harris also allowed a long ball, though his performance was fairly encouraging. The undrafted reliever mostly shelved his signature curveball — something to keep an eye on — and instead leaned heavily on his cutter and slider. In the seventh inning, it worked wonders: he struck out the first two batters he faced, and then induced an inning-ending groundball.
But he stayed on the mound for the eighth inning and, while he struck out the ultra-talented Zac Veen, he also gave up a single and a two-run home run. In Harris’ defense, that dinger — Colorado’s fourth and final one of the day — was also a vintage Cactus League bomb. It was hit at just 95.2 mph, and carried an expected batting average of only .190. In all, even though he allowed as many runs as innings pitched, it was an encouraging outing for Harris, though he was pitching at the point of the game where there aren’t many Major Leaguers to be found.
The Giants couldn’t match that thump, but they did have a pair of powerful swings of the bat, including the most impressive swing of the day. In the bottom of the first inning, Matt Chapman — who is once again having a delightful swing — absolutely caught hold of one and let it ride. On the first pitch he saw from fellow righty Valento Bellozo, Chapman hit the ball 108.4 mph (the third hardest-hit ball of the day), and a staggering 460 feet for an absolute no-doubter. A thing of beauty!
In the fifth, it was the man with a new look: left fielder Heliot Ramos. Sporting bleached hair to match his Puerto Rican teammates as he heads off for the WBC, Ramos looked in midseason form against veteran reliever Viktor Vodnik, a fellow righty. Ramos got ahead in the count 2-0, and then blasted a 99-mph challenge fastball 400 feet into the opposite-field desert air for his first home run of spring.
The Giants would score their third and final run of the game two batters later: after Patrick Bailey singled and was replaced by pinch-runner Grant McCray, Harrison Bader continued his excellent spring with an RBI double.
A few more notes from the game:
Bailey, after going a perfect 3-for-3 on challenges in his last game, lost a challenge in the first inning of this one. I’m guessing that’s not something we’ll see in the regular season.
Ramos, as we’ve grown accustomed to, hit the absolute snot out of the ball. His home run was the seventh-hardest hit ball of the game, while his other at-bat was a single on the fifth hardest-hit ball of the day. Chapman, similarly, had the third-hardest hit ball on his homer, and the sixth hardest-hit ball on a groundout.
NRI Parks Harber has been opening eyes ever since the Giants acquired him in the Camilo Doval trade, and there’s one primary reason: he hits the stitches off the ball. That was on display Thursday, when Harber only had one at-bat, but used it to record the hardest-hit baseball all game, a 111.8-mph single.
If you were listening to the audio of the game, the highlight came during Harris’ strong seventh inning. The broadcasters were sitting near Harris’ family, and you could hear them screaming and cheering very loudly with every strike thrown and every out recorded. It was a great moment.
Right-hander Spencer Bivens worked around a pair of singles to record a scoreless third inning.
Lefty NRI Juan Sánchez made his second appearance of the spring, and it went very well. He handled a scoreless ninth inning and struck out two batters, while giving up a single. He peaked at 95.3 mph in his first spring since 2024, after missing all of last year recovering from Tommy John surgery.
The Giants host the Dodgers tomorrow at 12:05 p.m PT and hey, what do you know, there will actually be video for that game! It’s Robbie Ray vs. Yoshinobu Yamamoto. Tyler Mahle is expected to make his Giants debut on Saturday.
NEWARK, N.J. (AP) — Lina Ljungblom notched her first two points of the season and Ann-Renée Desbiens saved 34 shots to lead the Montréal Victoire over the New York Sirens 4-1 on Thursday night in the first PWHL game since the Olympic break.
Skylar Irving made it a 3-0 lead on an unassisted goal with 9:53 left in the first period, making it three goals on four shots for the Victoire (8-3-0-5), which moved into a 30-point tie for first place with the Boston Fleet.
The Victoire had another goal taken off the board due to goaltender interference. The fourth-place Sirens (7-0-3-7) quickly made a goalie change, switching out Kayle Osborne for Callie Shanahan early in the second period.
The lone Sirens goal came on a power play a few minutes later on a shot by Casey O'Brien assisted by Maja Nylen Persson and Sarah Fillier, who picked up her 10th assist of the year (second in the PWHL).
The Victoire extended their lead to 4-1 with a power-play goal early in the third on a puck that deflected awkwardly off the stick of Ljungblom — her first goal of the season — over the head of Shanahan.
Desbiens, who entered with the second-lowest goals-against average (1.16 per game) finished with a .971 save percentage, saving all but one of the 35 shots she faced. Erin Ambrose and Marie-Philip Poulin were out due to injuries.
Feb 26, 2026; Brooklyn, New York, USA; San Antonio Spurs forward Victor Wembanyama (1) drives to the basket against Brooklyn Nets center Nic Claxton (33) during the second quarter at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images | Brad Penner-Imagn Images
You know the Spurs have reached a new level from even a month ago when they can look tired and a step slow, and still blow out a bad team (remember, playing down to opponents used to be a thing of theirs). After a hard-fought, exhausting win in Toronto the night before, the Spurs avoided a letdown game against the Brooklyn Nets by beginning the game strong and overcoming some rough stretches by spreading the wealth and riding the hot hand of the moment on their way to a 126-110 victory.
Seven Spurs scored in double figures, led by 26 from the hometown kid Julian Champagnie on 10-14 shooting, 6-9 from three. Michael Porter, Jr. was cold in the first half but exploded in the second for the Nets, finishing with 25 points and 14 rebounds.
Observations
Ed Malloy has always been one of my least favorite refs in the league (egotistical, heavy with the technicals, etc.), and he reminded me why at tip-off. Nic Claxton was grabbing Victor Wembanyama and crossing into his territory, so there were lots stops to reset him. Then, when Malloy finally threw the jump ball, Claxton was draped all over Wemby, who still won it. However, instead of either letting it go and allowing the game to start or calling a foul on Claxton, Malloy decided to redo the throw. Wemby again won it, but come on, Ed! (I think I’m running out of basketball brain cells to want to type this all out.)
The first quarter was a snooze fest, but in a good way because the Spurs were doing what they’re supposed to do: methodically (if unexcitedly) work down an inferior opponent. It lacked the excitement of recent games and opponents, but Devin Vassell remained hot, hitting is two three-point attempts, and Stephon Castle carved up the Nets’ putrid defense for 13 points in the quarter on the way to a 36-22 lead.
The Spurs hit four straight threes to open the second quarter each from their two NY/NJ-area players in Champagnie and Dylan Harper, but things got for sloppy as the Spurs seemed to lose focus, and the Nets managed to cut what had been a 22-point lead down to 12. But, they again did what good teams do and got their act back together to regain control by halftime, behind 19 first-half points from Champagnie.
The Spurs were again asleep at the wheel to start the third quarter as the Nets got within six while Porter Jr. got hot with 17 points in the quarter. This time, it was De’Aaron Fox’s turn to be the stabilizer with 10 points and initiating ball movement. That helped spark everyone else back into form, and five more made threes helped the Spurs get the lead back out to 20, and that was essentially the ball game with the fourth quarter being extended garbage time.
Victor Wembanyama had his third straight off game on offense, although he wasn’t forcing things tonight. He finally got his first field goal late in the second quarter and finished with 12 points on 3-9 shooting, 7 rebounds, 5 assists and 2 blocks. He mentioned after last night’s win in Toronto that he was tired from the lack of rest during All-Star weekend and he hadn’t slept well the night before. The back-to-back tonight probably didn’t help much in that regard, but they have two days off before they play the Knicks, followed by a quick train ride to Philadelphia, so hopefully the rest and lack of travel over the next several days helps him regain his rhythm.
The win gives the Spurs their third undefeated month in franchise history (with a minimum of 10 games played). Their entire 11-game win streak has been within the month of February, with their last loss being the infamous snow game in Charlotte. Also, if they win the next two, they will sweep the Rodeo Road Trip. Who saw this happening coming into the season?
Utah Jazz leading scorer Lauri Markkanen is out and will be re-evaluated in two weeks after an MRI of an injury suffered in practice on Wednesday found a hip impingement, a story broken by Shams Charania of ESPN.
Markkanen also tweaked his ankle during that practice, but the MRI on it was clean, Charania added. (The NBA did not send a doctor to review the MRI results, despite an online report, which was quickly retracted.)
Markkanen has played at an All-Star level this season, leading the Jazz in scoring, averaging 26.7 points and 6.9 rebounds per game. He has missed 16 games lately due to a variety of ailments.
Markkanen found himself in the middle of the NBA’s tanking debate when the Jazz, for a short stretch, played him and just-acquired Jaren Jackson Jr. for 25 minutes per game but sat them in the fourth quarter (Utah blew a lead to Orlando and lost in one of those games). Utah owes its pick to Oklahoma City but it is top-eight protected, and the Jazz are tanking to hold on to that pick (they currently have the sixth-worst record in the league and a 96% chance of retaining the pick).
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver was not amused by the creative benchings and brought the hammer with a $500,000 fine for Utah for sitting its stars in key moments of an undecided game. The Jazz got the message and since then Jackson (knee) and Jusuf Nurkic (nose) both needed surgeries that happen to end their seasons.
Now Markkanen will miss at least two weeks, and likely more. For medical reasons.
ATLANTA, GA - FEBRUARY 26: Corey Kispert #24 of the Atlanta Hawks shoots the ball during the game against the Washington Wizards on February 26, 2026 at State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Georgia. 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 Hagy/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
Not going to lie, this was such an uncompetitive game against a clearly tanking team that I have nothing to recap.
Corey Kispert had 22 in the first half and a career-high (!) 33 points overall. Newbies CJ McCollum and Jonathan Kuminga added 25 and 17 respectively.
PITTSBURGH, PA - FEBRUARY 26: Parker Wotherspoon #28 of the Pittsburgh Penguins battles against Dawson Mercer #91 of the New Jersey Devils at PPG PAINTS Arena on February 26, 2026 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Joe Sargent/NHLI via Getty Images) | NHLI via Getty Images
Pregame
The first Crosby-less lineup of the season for the Penguins serves as the first Samuel Girard appearance in the lineup. Arturs Silovs gets the nod in net.
Both teams trade some chances early, the Penguins are the better team early with the Evgeni Malkin line generating some chances before New Jersey starts to get the better of the play, forcing Silovs to make a couple of nice blocker stops.
Pittsburgh gets the first power play and nice zone time, it takes a while for them to settle in. Malkin and Kris Letang move the puck, Letang fires. Tommy Novak gets a piece to redirect things on Jacob Markstrom. 1-0.
One goal often begats another, NJ gets a chance very late but it doesn’t go.
Shots go 9-6 PIT in the first, the power play goal being the difference.
Second period
The Devils adjust and respond in the second with a better effort and more control of the puck. They get their first power play when Malkin high sticks a guy.
The power play doesn’t score but it helps build towards a goal soon after. Paul Cotter gets a piece of a Dougie Hamilton point shot. The Penguins decide to challenge, for some unknown reason because there was hardly anything there.
Goal stands, NJ to the power play. The Pens kill it off but are right back to the penalty box soon after, Avery Hayes being the guilty party this time with a slash.
The penalty parade continues, Hayes draws one this time however the Penguins can’t score on their second power play of the evening. Soon after it’s Kris Letang’s turn to head to the box after knocking over Jesper Bratt. Another kill after some Connor Dewar hero ball to keep rushes going up the ice.
Turns out with 2:00 left that one more power play can get squeezed into a penalty-fest of a period, this time Simon Nemec of the Devils was the guilty party. No dice for the Pens on the late chance for a go-ahead goal.
Silovs and saves like this are the reason the game is tied after two periods:
Pittsburgh comes out strong to start the third, the Hayes, Rakell and Rust line builds momentum and amps up the pressure. That continues a little later, Ryan Shea hammers the post so hard the puck ricochets with force way out to Connor Clifton. Clifton can tell that Markstrom is way off his angle and quickly sends another effort in. It hits the crossbar and goes in. 2-1 Pens.
50 seconds later, the Pens double their lead. Malkin springs Egor Chinakhov, who drives to the net and makes a deft move to lift the puck back across Markstrom. 3-1 Pens, just like that.
The Devils pull Markstrom with almost four minutes left, getting aggressive while down two goals. That added pressure might have been a reason Clifton went to clear a puck on his backhand and sailed it out of play to take a penalty. They get Markstrom out for a 6v4 but their push ends when Blake Lizotte picks off a Hamilton pass, skates down and puts the puck into the empty net. 4-1.
Some thoughts
Faceoffs will be one area to monitor for the Pens without Crosby. He’s always not only near the top of the league in faceoff winning percentage, but also in pure numbers of faceoffs. This season, for instance, Crosby’s 1,171 faceoffs represent almost 39% of the total draws the team has had and was the third highest in the league. Ben Kindel (way down 402 faceoffs) was next on the list. Faceoffs were a struggle tonight, the Pens only won 40% of the draws and most of their top centers struggled (Rakell at 30%, Lizotte and Novak at a matching 33%).
Welp, Dan Muse didn’t learn what goaltender interference was during the Olympic break. Muse is now 0-6 at making coaches challenges in that area. Each one has been seemingly been a worse challenge than the next, this one was almost no amount of contact with the goalie. It’s arguably the one hole in Muse’s coaching repertoire so far. Whatever the thought process is on those challenges need to be worked out, already!
One area Muse has nailed is in the department of picking a goalie. Silovs was incredible in this game and was at his best when most of the game was tight. The Pens weren’t great over stretches for this one, thanks to their goalie they weren’t punished for that and able to punch in a few in the third period to pull away.
Connor Dewar had two shorthanded breakaways. Didn’t score on either though it’s a sign he’s definitely looking to get up the ice these days even when shorthanded. The Pens’ PK has been good this year (and very good lately) yet they haven’t really been aggressively looking to strike on it too often. That might be changing.
Samuel Girard as a Penguin was an interesting watch, as expected he’s a good skater. You can tell he’s been well-schooled and coached, had a team-high three blocks and was positioned impeccably in the defensive zone to leave a fine first impression.
Evgeni Malkin always seems to look fresh and rejuvenated when he gets a few weeks off, he doubtlessly also knows without No. 87 around it’s on him to step up as the guy. That usually works out well too given his 1.34 point/game rate in the situation. Two assists tonight, plus four shots on goal, very noticeable performance.
The defense was just as key at generating offense tonight. Letang’s shot got deflected for a goal. Shea hit two posts, the second one opening up an opportunity for his partner Clifton to score it himself. All hands are going to have to be on deck like that.
The penalty kill is going to have to be strong as well, and was up to the task by going a perfect 5/5, plus Lizotte’s EN clincher. Big effort there, particularly in the second period when New Jersey had four cracks at their power play.
Pens improve to 11-1-5 in games against division opponents this year. Massive stuff to pile up the points against the teams they’re competing with the most for a playoff berth.
That makes for a victorious first game back from the break, getting the Pens off on the right foot for what figures to be a very challenging path ahead. They handled business nicely against a team down in the standings while at home, as they should have. Up next are two afternoon games this weekend, starting in New York against the Rangers on Saturday.
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Tyrese Maxey broke Allen Iverson's 76ers franchise record for 3-pointers, finishing with five 3s and 28 points Thursday night in Philadelphia's 124-117 victory over the Miami Heat.
Maxey also had 11 assists and helped steady the Sixers after they blew a 16-point halftime lead. Joel Embiid had 26 points and 11 rebounds and Kelly Oubre scored 21 points for Philadelphia, which has won three straight after dropping its previous four.
Bam Adebayo had 29 points and 14 rebounds and Tyler Herro scored 25 points for the Heat, who have lost two straight.
Maxey came in with 882 3-pointers, three behind Iverson, and broke the record with 1:38 left in the first quarter. He made all five of his 3s — a career high for a period — and scored 20 points in the first quarter alone. He finished 5 of 12 beyond the arc.
The 25-year-old Maxey has 887 3-pointers midway through his sixth season; Iverson played his first 10 seasons and parts of two more for the Sixers.
Miami took its first lead of the game on a 3 by Herro with 2:44 left, but the Heat didn't score again. Maxey hit two free throws and then found Kelly Oubre for a 3 to put the Sixers back ahead 121-117. Embiid extended the lead on a 3 with 29.2 seconds remaining.
The Sixers led 73-57 at halftime. Miami rallied to tie it late in the third quarter, and the margin was within single digits the rest of the way.
The Florida Panthers resumed their NHL season following the league’s Olympic break when they hosted the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday night.
With only 25 games remaining and plenty of ground to make up in the playoff race, Florida jumped all over the Leafs and skated to an exhilarating 5-1 victory at Amerant Bank Arena.
It didn’t take long for the Panthers to give their home fans something to cheer about.
Just 3:18 into the game, Brad Marchand jumped on the rebound of an Anton Lundell shot from the side boards, kicking the puck to his stick and depositing it behind a sprawling Joseph Woll to give the Cats an early 1-0 lead.
Less than two minutes later, with Nicolas Roy in the penalty box for tripping Matthew Tkachuk, the Panthers stuck again.
This time it was a great backhand pass by Evan Rodrigues finding Carter Verhaeghe at the side of Woll’s net, and a quick snipe over Woll’s glove to put Florida up 2-0 at the 5:13 mark.
With Toronto on the power play late in the period, Florida took the opportunity to add to their lead.
As the Leafs were attempting to exit their own zone and move toward Florida’s blue line, Rodrigues picked off a pass by William Nylander and headed in all alone on a breakaway.
A nasty backhand-forehand move in which Rodrigues completely stopped his forward motion and dangled the puck around Woll’s leg gave the Panthers a 3-0 lead to take into the first intermission.
That’s how the score would remain until early in the third period.
With Toronto on the power play, a backhand pass by John Tavares went off Gus Forsling’s skate and through the legs of Sergei Bobrovsky, cutting into Florida’s lead just 47 seconds into the final frame.
The Leafs wouldn’t get any closer, as Bobrovsky shut the door and Marchand added an empty-net goal with 3:09 to go to give the Cats a 4-1 lead.
For good measure, Matthew Tkachuk also got in on the fun, scoring his own empty-netter with 1:52 to go after Toronto pulled Woll a second time.
Photo caption: Feb 26, 2026; Sunrise, Florida, USA; Florida Panthers left wing Brad Marchand (63) scores against Toronto Maple Leafs goaltender Joseph Woll (60) during the first period at Amerant Bank Arena. (Sam Navarro-Imagn Images)
Midway through the Feb. 26 home game against the Detroit Red Wings, Tkachuk had a bloody nose and a trip to the penalty box.
At the 7:40 mark of the second period, Red Wings defenseman Simon Edvinsson delivered a big hit that sent Tkachuk to the ice. The puck wasn't nearby, so Edvinsson was assessed two minutes for interference, plus five minutes for fighting as Ottawa's Dylan Cozens dropped the gloves in defense of his teammate.
Tkachuk scored the game's opening goal, but Detroit captain Dylan Larkin, another Team USA standout, scored twice in the Red Wings' 2-1 overtime win.
The day was a busy one for Tkachuk, who was making his first appearance since the Olympics. He answered questions after practice about the gold medal experience plus a White House TikTok video in which his voice was dubbed over to make it sound like he was insulting Canadians.
Tkachuk called the video, which included artificial intelligence, "clearly fake because it's not my voice and not my lips moving."
He added: "It's not my voice. It's not what I was saying. I would never say that. It's not who I am. So, I guess I don't like that video."
