Fresh off a rout of Milwaukee, the Knicks (38*-22) host the Spurs (43-16), team riding an 11-game win streak. The teams split their recent meetings: the Knicks fell 134–132 in Texas on New Year’s Eve after beating the Spurs 124–113 in the NBA Cup Final.
Tip-off is 1 pm EST on ABC. This is your game thread. This is Pounding the Rock. Please don’t post large photos, GIFs, or links to illegal streams in the thread. Be cool, fools! And go Knicks!
* Should be one more, but the Cup final doesn’t count.
Dec 31, 2025; San Antonio, Texas, USA; San Antonio Spurs center Luke Kornet (7) keeps the ball from New York Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns (32) in the second half at Frost Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Daniel Dunn-Imagn Images | Daniel Dunn-Imagn Images
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The Spurs have already faced the Knicks twice this season, although the first meeting was an “off the books” affair in the finals of the NBA Cup. All of the games in the Cup t0urnament exist as regular season games except the finals, which exist in a weird limbo where the game doesn’t count as part of the record and the player stats aren’t counted. So, if you go to ESPN, you can find the box score for the December 16 game, which the Knicks won 124-113, but that game isn’t listed anywhere on basketball-reference.com, which is my go-to site for basketball-related facts. I think I will go with the basketball-reference version of history, where the Spurs are 1-0 against the Knicks, beating them 134-132 in the Frost Bank Center on New Year’s Eve where the Spurs held on by hitting their free throws in the final minute of play.
Tonight, they’re in Madison Square Garden, where the third place Knicks are 22-8. They have a potent offense led by Jalen Brunson, who is a master at creating just enough space to get off a shot and score from anywhere on the court. Karl-Anthony Towns is a skilled big man with range who will be a hard cover for Victor Wembanyama who can’t sag off of him to protect the rim.
The Spurs are on an 11 game wining streak, and are two games behind OKC in the loss column in the race for first in the West. They have two games in the Rodeo Road Trip, tonight in New York, and Tuesday in Philly against the Sixers, and if they win both, they will have an undefeated RRT, which has never happened before in Spurs history. They have a six-game lead over the Rockets for third, and with 23 games left in the regular season, they seemed primed to head into the postseason with home court advantage for at least a couple of rounds, assuming they win in the first round. Let’s make this win steak an even dozen, and GOOO Spurs GOO!!
Game Prediction:
Jeremy Sochan eats a radioactive hot dog from a shady vendor outside the Garden, and gains the super power of infinite shelf life, so he can always be ready to play no matter how long he sits on the bench. However, his superhero name of Hot Dog Man does not ever become popular.
San Antonio Spurs at New York Knickerbockers March 1, 2026 | 12:00 PM CT Streaming: NBA League Pass TV: ABC Reminder: It is against site policy to post links to illegal streams in the comments.
Kings coach Jim Hiller gestures during a loss to the Colorado Avalanche on Dec. 29. (David Zalubowski / Associated Press)
The Kings fired coach Jim Hiller on Sunday amid ongoing struggles that have put the team's playoff hopes in a perilous spot.
The Kings named associate coach D.J. Smith the interim head coach for the remainder of the season. Smith was the Ottawa Senators' head coach for four and a half seasons from 2019 to 2023. He went 131-154-32 in Ottawa before being fired in December 2023.
Kings player development coach Matt Greene will serve as an assistant coach under Smith, the team said.
"I want to thank Jim Hiller for his dedication, professionalism, and the commitment he showed to our players and our team every day. He is a respected coach and person, and we appreciate the work he’s done behind our bench," Kings general manager Ken Holland said in a statement. "At this point in the season, we believe a change in leadership is necessary to give our group the best opportunity to reach its potential and compete at the level we expect. These decisions are never made lightly, but our responsibility is to position this team for success now and moving forward.”
After leading the Kings to a franchise-best 48 wins and 105 points in his first full season as coach, Hiller failed to replicate that success with a team that has appeared unorganized and undisciplined for much of the season. Hiller went 93-58-24 for a Kings franchise that hasn't won a playoff series since winning the Stanley Cup in 2014.
A roster constructed by Holland and his predecessor, Rob Blake, has struggled to score. The Kings are hopeful the acquisition of Artemi Panarin from the New York Rangers will jump-start their offense, but with Quinton Byfield struggling (13 goals, 33 points) and Kevin Fiala out for the remainder of the season, the Kings remain one of the NHL's most goal-starved teams. They rank 29th in average goals per game (2.53).
The Kings were expected to do better in captain Anze Kopitar's final campaign, but they are in danger of missing the playoffs for the first time in five seasons. Coming off the Olympic break, the Kings dropped their first two games, including an 8-1 loss to the Edmonton Oilers on Thursday that prompted chants of "Fire Hiller" from fans at Crypto.com Arena.
Former Ottawa Senators coach D.J. Smith is taking over as the Kings' interim head coach for the remainder of the season. (Chris Seward / Associated Press)
“We’ve just got to flat-out perform better," Kopitar told reporters after practice Sunday. "It wasn’t good enough. It wasn’t consistent enough. We’re looking for a jolt here and a spark to get our game together.”
Speaking to reporters Sunday, Holland said the Kings' struggles on defense in losses to Seattle and Vegas before the Olympic break, coupled with the losses to Vegas and Edmonton last week convinced him Friday he needed to fire Hiller. Holland said he "tried to wait as long I could."
Through 59 games, the Kings (24-21-14) are three points outside the final wild-card spot in the Western Conference heading into Monday's game against the NHL-leading Colorado Avalanche.
The Kings have one of the NHL's easier schedules over their final 23 games. They play the last-place Vancouver Canucks three times, and 14 of their 22 games after Monday are against teams currently not in a playoff spot. That said, most of those teams will be playing with more desperation as they look to make the playoffs — and some could look a lot different after Friday's trade deadline.
The teams met in a playoff rematch last spring, but after the Kings won the first two games at home, Hiller made a number of costly decisions in the two games in Edmonton, both of which his team lost, and the Oilers went on to eliminate the Kings in the first round for a fourth straight season.
Kings president Luc Robitaille expressed confidence in Hiller after the playoff setback, and Holland retained Hiller after he was hired as general manager.
In December, Holland gave his coach another vote of support.
“I expect him to be here the rest of the season,” he said.
The Florida Panthers could close the gap on a playoff spot to six points with a victory over New York today.
My Panthers vs. Islanders predictions expect the back-to-back Stanley Cup champions to get a big two points against a team playing without its star netminder.
Let’s dive deeper into my NHL picks for Sunday, March 1.
Panthers vs Islanders prediction
Panthers vs Islanders best bet: Panthers moneyline (-145)
The Florida Panthers have been much better since Matthew Tkachuk joined the lineup, ranking 5th in expected goal share (54.84%) over 12 games.
They are consistently controlling the run of play and generating more chances than they give up. That trend should continue against the New York Islanders, who slot 21st in xGF% over the same period.
Ilya Sorokin won’t be available to start after getting the nod Saturday, which means the Islanders can’t rely on elite goaltending to level the playing field. That’ll make it difficult for them to beat the Panthers.
Panthers vs Islanders same-game parlay
Sam Reinhart hasn’t scored in a season-long six consecutive games. He’s found the back of the net in six of his last seven against the Islanders, though, and won’t have to deal with Ilya Sorokin. This is a good spot to get back on track.
Matthew Tkachuk facilitates a ton of offense at 5-on-5 and shares the ice with Reinhart on the power play, where getting him the puck in shooting position is the top priority.
The Florida Panthers have hit the Moneyline in 13 of their last 20 away games (+4.35 Units / 19% ROI). Find more NHL betting trends for Panthers vs. Islanders.
How to watch Panthers vs Islanders
Location
UBS Arena, Elmont, NY
Date
Sunday, March 1, 2026
Tip-off
6:30 p.m. ET
TV
ESPN
Panthers vs Islanders latest injuries
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PORT CHARLOTTE, FLORIDA - FEBRUARY 24: Jake Fraley #17 of the Tampa Bay Rays doubles in three runs during the third inning of a spring training game against the Minnesota Twins at Charlotte Sports Park on February 24, 2026 in Port Charlotte, Florida. (Photo by Mark Taylor/Getty Images) | Getty Images
There will be MLB.tv coverage of the games today with the Braves broadcast available, along with both teams providing radio feeds.
First pitch against the Atlanta Braves is at 1:05 at CoolToday Park
Today’s highlight package is from June 7-9, 1999 when the Devil Rays took on the Atlanta Braves
ST LOUIS, MISSOURI - AUGUST 28: Spencer Horwitz #2 of the Pittsburgh Pirates tags Iván Herrera #48 of the St. Louis Cardinals out in the third inning at Busch Stadium on August 28, 2025 in St Louis, Missouri. (Photo by Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images) | Getty Images
How to Listen: 93.7 The Fan, 100.1 FM, AM 1020 KDKA, Sports Net Pittsburgh app SNP 360
The Pittsburgh Pirates on the road against the St. Louis Cardinals looking to grab a win in Spring Training.
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WEST PALM BEACH, FLORIDA - FEBRUARY 18: Isaac Paredes #15 of the Houston Astros poses for a photo during Houston Astros Photo Day at CACTI Park of the Palm Beaches on February 18, 2026 in West Palm Beach, Florida. (Photo by James Gilbert/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Astros (1-5-2) visit Port St. Lucie today to take on the New York Mets (4-3-1) at Clover Park.
RHP Jason Alexander will start for the Astros vs. Mets RHP Clay Holmes.
Today is the third game of six scheduled meetings between the Astros and Mets this Spring. The Astros are 0-1-1 thus far vs. the Mets. After today, their next meeting will not be until Mar. 14 in West Palm Beach. The two clubs will face off in the regular season in a three-game set, Aug. 28-30 at Citi Field.
Today will be the second start of the Spring for RHP Jason Alexander. His previous start was also at Clover Park on Feb. 24. Alexander proved to be a valuable in-season pickup for the Astros in 2025 when claimed off waivers on May 18 after being DFA’d by the Athletics. In his 14 appearances (13 starts) with HOU, he was 4-2 with a 3.66 ERA (29ER/71.1IP) with a save.
Remarkable Run: From July 29 – Sept. 15, the Astros went 9-0 in his nine starts, with Alexander posting a 2.32 ERA in that span. For August, Alexander was 3-0 with a 2.17 ERA in five starts.
Today is Jason Alexander’s 33rd birthday.
TODAY’S POTENTIAL RELIEVERS: LHP Tom Cosgrove, RHP Anthony Maldonado, RHP Christian Roa, RHP Alimber Santa, RHP Kai-Wei Teng, RHP Amos Willingham.
WALK THIS WAY: The Astros have drawn a combined 58 walks in eight games (7.3 per game).
REDDICK RETURNS:Former Astro JoshReddick is scheduled to arrive in camp on Monday to serve as a special instructor. Reddick played in HOU from 2017-2020.
Garland has been battling toe issues that date back to last playoffs, and he has played in just 26 games this season for the Cavaliers. He was currently out with a right big toe sprain and what was termed "left toe injury management." In his limited playing time this season, Garland is averaging 18 points and 6.9 assists per game while shooting 36% from 3-point range.
The Clippers are looking to get Garland healthy and help the point guard return to his 2025 All-Star form when he averaged 20.6 points and 6.5 assists, helping lead the best offense in the NBA last season.
Garland will not play Sunday when the Clippers host the New Orleans Pelicans. Clippers star Kawhi Leonard is not on the team's injury report after missing Los Angeles' Thursday loss to Minnesota after tweaking his ankle.
NORTH PORT, FL - FEBRUARY 20: James Karinchak #00 of the Atlanta Braves poses for a photo during the Atlanta Braves photo day at CoolToday Park on Friday, February 20, 2026 in North Port, Florida. (Photo by Daniel Shirey/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
Well, folks, it is March. That means regular season games happen later this month and we will hopefully have meaningful games for the seven months that follow.
But, there are still almost four weeks of Spring Training games left, which means there is still time for the Atlanta Braves 2026 Opening Day roster to evolve.
Back on Valentine’s Day, we published the first Spring Training roster projection. Now that the Braves have are weeks-deep into the Grapefruit League, there are a few change from the initial projection. Part of that is due to a subtraction and an addition to take into account.
As a reminder, this projection is based on who is on the Braves’ 40-man roster or in camp with the team at this moment in time and assumes that everyone is “healthy” when Opening Day rolls around. All the usual caveats apply related to injuries, acquisitions and the like.
Position Players
Catcher: Drake Baldwin
First base: Matt Olson
Second base: Ozzie Albies
Shortstop: Mauricio Dubón
Third base: Austin Riley
Right field: Ronald Acuña, Jr.
Center field: Micheal Harris II
Left field: Mike Yastrzemski
Designated hitter: Jurickson Profar
Bench: Jonah Heim, Eli White, Jorge Mateo, Kyle Farmer
The only change here is catcher Sandy León as he leaves the initial roster in favor of non-roster invitee Kyle Farmer. Farmer, a local product who went to Marist High School and then UGA, will turn 36 on August 17, and brings nine years of big league experience to the Braves. León will likely head to Triple-A to provide depth but more importantly help develop the pitching staff.
Farmer make the roster thanks to 300 career games at shortstop, 200+ games at second base, more than 160 appearances at third base – and most importantly for the Braves roster construction – 19 games behind the plate. Although he hasn’t caught in a game since making 15 starts in 2019, he would be the team’s third catcher, third shortstop and to slot into the 26th man spot allowing Atlanta to use fleet-footed reserve shortstop Jorge Mateo as a pinch-runner without risking two key defensive positions should something incredibly fluky occur.
Wild Cards: Dominic Smith, Luke Williams, Chadwick Tromp, Nacho Alvarez, Jr., Ben Gamel
Big league veteran Dominic Smith was a late addition to the Braves camp as a depth option at first base. If he sticks with the organization, he will likely be the latest veteran to provide the team some insurance at Triple-A in case Matt Olson were to miss time. It seems unlikely he’ll make the Opening Day roster at this point, but things could change should his bat get hot in the next three weeks.
Nacho Alvarez, Jr. and Chadwick Tromp are both headed to the World Baseball Classic have have been optioned and reassigned from camp, respectively. Both will head to Gwinnett to get regular playing time as the likely first-man-up should the team need an infielder or catcher. Luke Williams can’t be counted out since he can cover shortstop, pinch-run, and has proven to be a highly-effective position-player-pitcher, which might matter since the Braves start the year with 13 consecutive games, but also seems most likley to be a Striper when the season begins.
Outfielder Ben Gamel enters the chat, although he’d likley only make the roster should Atlanta need to replace one of their corner outfielders for Opening Day. He’s another long-time big leaguer who will likley add depth with the Stripers.
Pitchers
Starting pitchers: Chris Sale, Spencer Strider, Reynaldo Lopez, Grant Holmes, Bryce Elder, Joey Wentz
Bullpen: Raisel Iglesias, Robert Suarez, Dylan Lee, Tyler Kinley, Aaron Bummer, Joel Payamps, James Karinchak
Last time, Dylan Dodd was on the roster due to the mistaken believe that he was out of options. Because Dodd does have an option remaining, James Karinchak makes the 26-man roster as it looks like he has returned to the form he had when he was an elite reliever for Cleveland before dealing with injuries. Should Karinchak make the roster, it would be his first big league spot since 2023.
This projection continues to stick with belief that the Braves will open the season with a six-man rotation – more on that below.
Wild Cards: JR Ritchie, Jose Suaréz, Martín Peréz, Hayden Harris, Dylan Dodd
Unfortunately, Hurston Waldrep’s elbow issues will cause him to miss at least the first couple of months of the season, which means JR Ritchie becomes the starting pitcher most likley to make his way on to the Opening Day roster. Ritchie has looked good early in camp and Atlanta could be tempted to bring him north to Atlanta for the regular season – even if the play would be to give him a couple of starts since the Braves won’t have an off-day until 14 days into the season.
Martín Perez and Jose Suaréz could both factor into the sixth-starter/long-man role, but at this point, it seems like only an injury could cause that to happen.
Two weeks into Spring Training and the two pitchers who might be able to force their way on to the Opening Day roster are Dodd and Hayden Harris. Both left-handers have been effective thus far in camp, but Harris and his unusual pitch mix landed on an off-season top reliever prospect list and after a spectacular 2025 season in the minors, has nothing left to prove below the big league level.
Will this new coaching staff believe in Harris enough to give him an opportunity to prove himself in Atlanta to start the season? Time will tell if Harris continues to have a strong camp.
Barring an injury or trade, both Harris and Dodd should be a factor with Atlanta in 2026, but those pesky options may prevent them from seeing Opening Day with the Braves if Atlanta opts to maximize their roster flexibility.
Last thing, neither of these first two projections have included reliever Ian Hamilton who is on the 40-man roster and was highly effective a couple of seasons ago out of the New York Yankees bullpen. That wasn’t an oversight, but he could factor into the Opening Day roster, but as of now, Joel Payamps holds on to the last right-handed reliever spot in the bullpen thanks in part to a $2.5M commitment for 2026.
Things may change again in two weeks, and hopefully if they do, it is only because of outstanding performance and not because of something negative.
The name Tye Kartye may sound like an anagram to you but it sounds like a part of the – you should excuse the expression to me – part of the grand Rangers tool to me.
Here's why:
In 1946, Conn Smythe's fifth place Maple Leafs needed a rebuild and one of the rookies he imported was an unknown left winger Vic Lynn out of Saskatoon.
Teamed with rookie of the year right wing Howie Meeker and young center Ted Kennedy, they comprised a new "Kid Line,"
I see Kartye as the new "Kid Line" with maybe a reformed Matt Rempe rounded it out, Listen up to what The Maven's Seattle Super-Savant, Glenn Dreyfuss, has to say about it:
Tye Kartye burned brightly to start his Seattle Kraken career, but by this season, it had faded to embers. The 24-year-old 4th line forward, placed on waivers Thursday, was claimed by the New York Rangers Friday morning.
No Kraken fan will forget Kartye’s impact during the first round of the 2023 playoffs against the defending champion Colorado Avalanche. Kartye was called up from AHL Coachella Valley as an injury replacement and scored his first NHL goal. He was also a physical wrecking ball with fierce hits that continued into the 2nd round series against the Dallas Stars. Improbably, he scored two more times, giving him three NHL goals before ever playing a regular season game.
That’s Kartye Hockey, Baby
With the Kraken’s Firebirds farm team in 2022-23, he had scored 28 goals and 57 points in 72 games. Tye rose from undrafted 4th liner in the AHL to that league’s rookie of the year .
The Kartye Party continued in Seattle during the 2023-24 season. He played 77 games, scoring 11 goals. But from there, the offensive production dried up. In 63 games last season, he scored six goals. He was on the same pace this season with three goals in 40 games. Recently, more often than not, he was a healthy scratch.
Coach Lane Lambert decided the 4th line chemistry worked better with Ryan Winterton, Jacob Melanson and Ben Meyers in the mix, so Kartye was placed on waivers. To return to the AHL Firebirds, he needed to go unclaimed by all 31 other NHL clubs. However, the Rangers, who have been a dumpster fire this year and will not make the playoffs, decided they could use the physicality and grit Kartye brings. Interestingly, to make room for Kartye, the Blueshirts demoted 2021 1st round pick Brennan Othman to the AHL.
Here in Seattle, the coaching staff knew what they had in Kartye, and decided the re-constituted 4th line was giving the Kraken more of a spark. Tye was the odd man out. Remember, Winterton and Meyers were just signed to new deals that will keep them part of the Kraken organization through the 27-28 season. Melanson, who will be a restricted free agent at year’s end, isn’t going anywhere, either.
Tye finishes his Kraken career with 180 games played, 20 goals and 21 assists, to go along with 101 penalty minutes. Kartye has one year remaining on a two-year deal with an annual cap hit of $1.25 million.
The Rangers likely will be trade deadline sellers, and will need warm bodies to finish out the season. The real question is where Kartye lands, if he lands, in the off-season.
The Brooklyn Nets will look to end a seven-game losing streak as they host the Cleveland Cavaliers on Sunday afternoon.
Cleveland blew out Brooklyn the last time these teams played, and I’m taking the visitors to cover again in my Cavaliers vs. Nets predictions.
Let’s break down what bettors can expect from this matchup in my free NBA picks for Sunday, March 1.
Cavaliers vs Nets prediction
Cavaliers vs Nets best bet: Cavaliers -12 (-110)
While the Brooklyn Nets have struggled all season long, their current seven-game losing streak is among their lowest points of the year. They’ve also lost every game against the spread in that span, even failing to cover four times as a 10+ point underdog.
That includes a 112-84 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers on February 19. Cleveland will have to play tonight’s game without Donovan Mitchell, and James Harden remains questionable with a thumb injury, but the Cavs should win this one in a blowout regardless. Cleveland has won six straight against Brooklyn, and I’m taking the Cavaliers to cover again tonight.
Cavaliers vs Nets same-game parlay
With Mitchell out and Harden questionable, I’m banking on more production out of Cleveland’s other players today. I’ll take Jarrett Allen to score Over 17.5 points, which he’s done in four of his last five games, while Sam Merrill’s increased playing time will help him get Over 1.5 assists.
Cavaliers vs Nets SGP
Cavaliers -12
Allen Over 17.5 points
Merrill Over 1.5 assists
Our "from downtown" SGP: Bigs deliver the goods
I’m looking for Jarrett Allen to add to his growing number of double-doubles after he’s recorded nine in his last 11 games. I’m also banking on both Merrill and Evan Mobley to hit their PRA totals without Cleveland’s top options at full strength. Finally, let’s throw in a bet on the Over, which has hit in Brooklyn’s last three games and four of Cleveland’s last five.
Cavaliers vs Nets SGP
Jarrett Allen double-double
Evan Mobley Over 26.5 P/R/A
Sam Merrill Over 17.5 P/R/A
Over 222.5
Cavaliers vs Nets odds
Spread: Cavaliers -12 | Nets +12
Moneyline: Cavaliers -600 | Nets +450
Over/Under: Over 222.5 | Under 225.5
Cavaliers vs Nets betting trend to know
Brooklyn is 0-7 ATS in its last seven games overall. Find more NBA betting trends for Cavaliers vs. Nets.
How to watch Cavaliers vs Nets
Location
Barclays Center, Brooklyn, NY
Date
Sunday, March 1, 2026
Tip-off
3:30 p.m. ET
TV
FDSN Ohio, YES
Cavaliers vs Nets latest injuries
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The Gunners won a local stramash by two corners to one
4 min: A fairly shapeless start, actually. “The best pints are Thursday night.” Hello Ian McCourt, formerly of this parish. “Or about 1.30pm on a Friday.”
2 min: A mid-octane start to the game. No real shape yet, though it’s obvious that Palmer is prowling the left wing today, opposite to his usual beat.
Philadelphia Flyers forward Owen Tippett has come up as a trade candidate this season. Due to this and the 2026 NHL trade deadline rapidly approaching, let's look at three potential landing spots for the Flyers winger if he is officially made available.
Boston Bruins
The Bruins have been connected to Tippett this season, and it makes sense when noting that they need another skilled winger in their top six. With this, they are certainly one of the teams to watch when it comes to Tippett. If the Bruins acquired him, he could fit perfectly on their second line with Casey Mittelstadt and Pavel Zacha.
Buffalo Sabres
The Sabres have a strong chance of snapping their 14-year playoff drought this season and should be aggressive at the deadline. They could use another forward on the right side of 30, so it would make sense if they made a push for Tippett. He would give them another impactful forward for their top nine, which would be a great thing for a Sabres club on the rise.
Vancouver Canucks
The Canucks are another club that have been linked to Tippett in the past. While they are rebuilding, Tippett could still be a strong addition to their roster. With Tippett still being just 27 years old and being locked up until 2031-32, he could be a good long-term fit on the Canucks if they landed him.
It’s been three years now. Three long seasons during which Jayden Struble and Arber Xhekaj have battled for the role of sixth defenseman with the Montreal Canadiens. During that span, the former has played 152 games, and the latter 165. During the 2023-24 season, Xhekaj had season-ending shoulder surgery, but since it occurred in April, it cost him only four games.
Needless to say, the Habs have a big enough sample size to know what both are made of, their strength and their weaknesses, but whichever one of the two is dressed seems to make little difference to Martin St-Louis. This past week, Xhekaj played against the New York Islanders while Struble took on the Washington Capitals. The former saw 11:58 of ice time, all at even strength; the latter saw 11:08 of action and sat through special teams, even when Mike Matheson was in the box killing a penalty, St-Louis preferring to send out Lane Hutson to kill the penalty.
Xhekaj landed three hits against the Islanders, while Struble landed one against the Caps. The free agent signing was held off the scoresheet and only has two points in 51 games. The Northeastern alumnus registered an assist on Cole Caufield’s second goal of the game and has nine points, all assists, in 40 games.
The 6-foot-4 and 240-pound blueliner has 104 penalty minutes and leads the team in hits with 138. The 6-foot and 207-pound rearguard has 36 penalty minutes and is sixth on the team in hits with 74.
In other words, Xhekaj brings more physicality, and Struble brings more offence to the table. While Xhekaj averages 11:21 in ice time this season, and Struble averages 13:59, he has lost a lot of ice time of late, which is slowly but surely driving his average down, and can only lead to one conclusion: the bench boss doesn’t really trust either.
While spreading the workload between five defensemen in the regular season can be done, it gets trickier in the playoffs, where you can end up playing much longer games with continuous overtime. If you overwork your top guys, you risk wearing them out, and tired players become less effective; it’s human nature.
If the Canadiens are calling around the NHL and enquiring about the asking price for various defensemen, such as Rasmus Ristolainen, that’s probably why, but there are no perfect defensemen. Especially when it comes to depth, bottom-pairing blueliners, you eventually must learn to live with the consequences of their shortcomings, and given how playoff hockey is played, St-Louis would do well to learn to cope with Xhekaj’s defensive shortcomings. Of course, they might be easier to cope with if goaltending improved. Even if the Habs’ brass goes out and gets a depth defenseman on the trade market, they won’t play like top-pairing defensemen.
SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA - MARCH 28: Reynaldo Lopez #40 of the Atlanta Braves throws a pitch against the San Diego Padres during the first inning at Petco Park on March 28, 2025 in San Diego, California. (Photo by Orlando Ramirez/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Braves have their first split squad matchup of Spring today, as Reynaldo Lopez and most of the regulars on offense face Drew Rasumussen and the Rays at CoolToday Park and Grant Holmes leads a team of mostly veteran quad-A players plus John Gil at DH against Mick Abel and the Twins. You can see the lineups below.
Reynaldo Lopez’ velocity will be worth monitoring, after it sat low-90s in his first Spring appearance. That Rays game should be fairly fun with a number of regulars and/or real prospects playing for both teams and real major league pitchers starting the game. We should expect to see a number of prospects touch the field today, with the split squad set-up, which is always a fun aspect of Spring Training. It’s also cool to see John Gil getting some more playing time, as he is a guy who had some real prospect buzz coming into Spring Training and has only made the buzz grow louder in his limited playing time.
You can catch the Rays game on Gray TV in-market and the Twins game nationally on MLB Network, or use MLBTV for your preferred viewing experience. Both games start at 1:05 PM ET
Join us and discuss today’s games in the comments below!
