The Pittsburgh Penguins made a big move last week, as they traded goaltender Tristan Jarry to the Edmonton Oilers. One of the pieces the Penguins got back from the Oilers in the trade was veteran defenseman Brett Kulak.
Kulak has the potential to be a nice addition to the Penguins' roster. When playing at his best, the 31-year-old is a reliable defenseman who plays a smart game. He certainly showed this during this past season with the Oilers, as he recorded seven goals and 25 points in 82 games.
Yet, with Kulak being a pending unrestricted free agent (UFA) and the Penguins having a ton of defensemen, could he end up being a potential trade chip for Pittsburgh this season? It seems possible.
During a recent appearance on the NHL Network, Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman brought up the possibility of the Penguins trading Kulak this campaign.
"I think Kulak is a better player than he's shown this season," Friedman said. "He's had a really rough year. I've always liked him. It will be interesting to see if they flip him for more."
With Kulak being a proven veteran defenseman with plenty of playoff experience, it is certainly possible that he could generate interest from contenders this season. He is a solid bottom-pairing defenseman who can kill penalties, so he would be a nice depth pickup for a playoff club to bring in if the Penguins decide to shop him.
LAS VEGAS — The last time we saw the Oklahoma City Thunder, it was in a dramatic NBA Cup loss to Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs.
That dropped the Thunder to 24-2 on the season, "only" a record 76-win pace. They are off to the second-fastest start in NBA history, trailing only the 2015-16 Golden State Warriors, who were 25-1 and went on to set an NBA record 73 wins that season.
Does eclipsing that regular-season win record matter?
"Absolutely," Shai Gilgeous-Alexander said. "Winning matters, and no matter what form it looks like to me. So absolutely."
They absolutely can do it, too. The first part of chasing a record like that is the "want" factor — do they want to chase it? Talking to some Thunder players in Las Vegas, the answer was yes, but it has to come in the flow of them improving throughout the season and staying healthy. Beyond the desire to do it, the Thunder have the talent — a defense that is the best in the league by a country mile, the fifth-ranked offense, and a net rating of +16.4 that would set a league record.
There are a lot of similarities between the 2015-16 Warriors, who set the league record with 73 wins, and these Thunder. Both were teams coming off their first titles and looking to make a mark as a dynasty, both are led by superstars coming off their first MVP (Stephen Curry and Gilgeous-Alexander), and both teams have deep talent pools around those stars, talented guys who want to win.
Also, both those 2016 Warriors and these Thunder are willing to talk openly about chasing that record. However, those Thunder also remember that the 73-win Warriors blew a 3-1 lead in the Finals and blamed that, in part, on being tired from the record chase.
"Yes, because we're competitive, you know what I mean," Jalen Williams said when asked if they were going to go after the record. "You could say that we're chasing it, but it's also one of those things that we are not going out there to lose, either. So if it happens organically, then it does.
"Obviously, down the road, whenever that gets there, it's like, all right, do we sacrifice health when we're already solidified at the No. 1 or whatever the spot is? You get into those questions, we can answer those down the road.
"But a lot of it is just seeing how good we can be every game and if it results in a win and we get there, then that's cool. But once you get to the playoffs, everybody, your season really doesn't matter. So that's kind of how we look at it."
The loss to the Spurs in a big national game wasn't seen as a setback so much as a learning experience in the Thunder locker room.
"What are we, 24-2?" Williams said. "I mean, we can go home and just hang our hat on that, or we can look at it as a way to get better and understand that we played against a playoff team that beat us and gave us a two [second loss] on our thing. So that's how we'll look at it from a competitive standpoint."
The other competitive standpoint: The Thunder get two more shots at the Spurs next week. The two will face off on Tuesday night on Coast 2 Coast on NBC and Peacock, then they will play again in a prime slot on Christmas Day.
Take those two games from an outstanding Spurs team, and the Thunder's threat to surpass the Warriors' 73-win record will be in even more jeopardy.
Milan Lucic has officially signed with EIHL club, Fife Flyers, following his professional tryout with the St. Louis Blues.
Prior to pre-season, the Blues invited Lucic to their training camp, but the 37-year-old sustained an injury and missed most of the Blues' game action. When he recovered, he played with the Springfield Thunderbirds again on a PTO, but the Blues ultimately decided not to sign the 17-year NHL veteran.
The 2006 second-round pick (50th overall) played 1177 games in the NHL with the Boston Bruins, Los Angeles Kings, Edmonton Oilers and Calgary Flames, notching 233 goals and 586 points. Lucic also won a Stanley Cup with the Bruins in the 2010-11 season, scoring five goals and 12 points in 25 playoff games.
Lucic's new team, the Fife Flyers, is a Scottish-based team that currently sits last in the 10-team British league with three wins in its first 20 games. The team’s roster includes ex-NHLers Simon Després and David Booth, as well as 38-year-old Canadian left winger Garet Hunt, who was Lucic’s teammate on the Memorial Cup and WHL Champion Vancouver Giants.
According to the Flyers' press release, Lucic's signing with the Flyers is pending paperwork completion, and he will wear No.8 this season in the Kingdom.
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The Flyers now have seven defensemen, with Noah Juulsen being a reliable extra when needed. The club plays its third game of a four-game road trip Thursday when it meets the Sabres (7:30 p.m. ET/ESPN+, Hulu).
Zamula had played only 13 games for the Flyers this season. He had one assist and a plus-4 rating. The 25-year-old struggled at times in the defensive zone and moving the puck with pace.
He last played 11 days ago when the Flyers fell to the NHL-leading Avalanche, 3-2. Zamula and Juulsen were on the ice for two of Colorado’s goals.
The Flyers made the decision on Zamula before the Dec. 20-27 holiday roster freeze. We’ll see if they have any interest in calling up a forward from the Phantoms. With Tyson Foerster out for the rest of the season after undergoing surgery on his arm, Alex Bump could get a look at some point.
Re-signing Alex Bregman was a priority for the Boston Red Sox heading into the offseason. But if recent reports on the third baseman’s market are accurate, don’t count on a reunion.
Signing Bregman to that kind of contract would be out of character for the Red Sox, who are notoriously reluctant to offer long-term deals to players in their 30s. It’s still a possibility — they signed then-29-year-old shortstop Trevor Story to a six-year pact in 2022 — but it’s hard to picture them outbidding clubs that are willing to get aggressive for Bregman’s services.
The Arizona Diamondbacks have surprisingly emerged as one of those clubs. Multiple MLB insiders have named the D’backs as a legitimate threat to sign Bregman, who hails from nearby New Mexico and works out in Phoenix. Jared Carrabis of the popular “Section 10” Red Sox podcast, who has a personal relationship with Bregman, believes Arizona is willing to go up to six years for the three-time All-Star.
Five or six years for Bregman is risky, but the Red Sox put themselves in a position where they lack a better alternative. They essentially signed Bregman to replace slugger Rafael Devers, who they shipped to the San Francisco Giants in June. It would be a terrible look for Boston’s front office to watch Bregman sign elsewhere while holding onto the roughly $250 million it saved in the Devers deal.
If Bregman leaves, Bo Bichette is the next best option on the free-agent market. The 27-year-old has almost exclusively played shortstop throughout his career, but due to his defensive shortcomings, he’ll likely move to second or third base wherever he signs. He’s coming off a bounce-back season with Toronto in which he hit .311 with 18 homers and 94 RBI in 139 games.
Boston has also been linked to 34-year-old slugger Eugenio Suarez. While he’d add much-needed right-handed pop to the Red Sox’ lineup, he’s a defensive liability. Signing him as a Bregman replacement at third would be a head-scratcher.
If chief baseball officer Craig Breslow and Co. stand pat, former top prospect Marcelo Mayer is the best internal option to take over at the hot corner. Mayer’s debut season was cut short due to a wrist injury, but he played exceptional defense while replacing an injured Bregman at third. His bat still has a ways to go, especially against left-handed pitching.
The Red Sox, who still haven’t made a big-league free-agent signing this winter, can still save themselves an even bigger headache by simply paying Bregman. The likelihood of a reunion seems to be rapidly decreasing, however, and fans should be hovering over the panic button if they haven’t hit it already.
Both general manager Mathieu Darche and head coach Patrick Roy were in Bridgeport for their 5-0 loss to the Syracuse Crunch on Wednesday.
Warren, 24, played two games earlier this season for the Islanders, filling in for Alexander Romanov when he sustained an upper-body injury back in late October.
The Laurel Hollow, Long Island native recorded two assists in his first NHL game, playing 11:20 minutes in a 3-2 shootout loss to the Philadelphia Flyers. Then, he played 12:56 in a 5-2 loss to the Boston Bruins before being returned to Bridgeport.
Fellow rookie defenseman Travis Mitchell had been holding down the Romanov fort, with the veteran blue liner now out for likely the rest of the season after undergoing shoulder surgery.
Mitchell, who recorded one goal in nine games, averaged 11:32 per game and was loaned back to Bridgeport on Monday. Once Mitchell plays in his 10th career NHL game, he'll lose his waiver-exemption status, which is likely the reason he was returned to the AHL.
While the Islanders certainly liked Mitchell's stability, Roy is likely looking for someone who can play a bit more minutes and take some of the load off No. 1 overall pick Matthew Schaefer and elite defenseman Adam Pelech.
Defenseman Isaiah George, who played 33 games with the Islanders last season, averaging 15:39 minutes per game, has been skipped twice now as a call-up option.
We will not count the Mitchell recall as one because George was out injured at the time of the transaction.
George has played only three games since missing a month of action with an upper-body injury, so he likely still needs more time before he's ready.
Will see if Warren plays on Friday night against the Vancouver Canucks, who they host at 7 PM ET, before facing the Buffalo Sabres on Saturday at 5 PM ET.
Warren was recalled on Nov. 25 after Romanov's latest injury. However, seventh defenseman Adam Boqvist got a string of games with the Islanders, after which Warren was optioned back to Bridgeport.
Warren has 12 points (three goals, nine assists) in 17 games with Bridgeport this season.
Because of that, the Wild have recalled defenseman Carson Lambos from the Iowa Wild of the American Hockey League (AHL).
Lambos, 22, has recorded two goals and five points in 26 games this year for Iowa. He has played the last three seasons in the AHL with Iowa and has recorded 11 goals, 27 assists and 38 points in 163 games.
The 6-foot-1 defenseman was drafted with the 26th overall pick in the 2021 NHL Draft. He has yet to appear in an NHL game but this is his second time being recalled from the AHL.
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Rifai has been skating for quite some time, and, over the last few weeks, has been participating in practices with the Maple Leafs. He's mostly been skating with fellow defenseman Chris Tanev, who's also working his way back from an injury (upper body) that he picked up on Nov. 1.
The Beaconsfield, Quebec native has played two games in his NHL career (Feb. 19 and 21, 2024) under former Toronto coach Sheldon Keefe. In those two games, the defenseman averaged 11:40 of ice time and was a plus-one.
During Maple Leafs head coach Craig Berube's tenure, Rifai has been called up but has yet to appear in the lineup. He played 63 games with the Marlies last season, tallying three goals and 10 assists.
"He's always in the mix since I've been here. He's a guy that can give you games and be ready to play. A guy like him, he gets in there and plays some games and gains confidence," Berube said earlier this month.
"He's got a lot of ability. He can skate. He's a physical player. But, yeah, I mean, you look at all the injuries we've got on the back end right now. I mean, those guys are important, right? We all know that. We see that now, how important these guys are, because (injuries) happen. And, you know, he can be playing."
Given Rifai is on the Maple Leafs' long-term injured reserve, his conditioning loan will last for six days and three games. The Maple Leafs are permitted to request a two-game extension for Rifai's loan to the AHL.
The Marlies play two games this weekend: a home-and-home against the Belleville Senators. They'll play at home on Saturday before heading to Belleville for an afternoon matchup on Sunday. Toronto will then host Belleville again next Friday.
Rifai was signed to an AHL deal by the Marlies as an undrafted defenseman in 2022, coming out of Harvard University. After a strong season with the Marlies, he earned a two-year, $1.55 million contract. He's since been re-signed to the same deal and is under contract until July 2027.
In 189 career AHL games, Rifai has nine goals and 48 points.
After a riveting second half comeback, the Knicks captured the NBA Cup with a 124-113 win over the San Antonio Spurs. A benefit of the cup is that it offers a glimpse into how teams react in high-leverage situations, how coaches figure out rotations and how the best players handle the bright lights.
New York's run in the NBA Cup was quick with three elimination games over the span of a full week, but it offered a chance to see how a future run in the playoffs could look in 2026.
Let’s look at three things we learned about the team after the NBA Cup title win.
Consistent scorer
After a 25-point, eight-assist night against San Antonio, Jalen Brunson took home the NBA Cup MVP award. It was a pedestrian night for the Knick captain, who shot 11-for-27, but his overall Cup performance was impressive.
Brunson averaged 33.3 points on 54.7 percent from the field and 6.7 assists through the three Cup elimination games.
The two-time All-Star has already cemented himself as one of the top performers in franchise history in just three and a quarter seasons. He has guided New York to more playoff series wins (four) than the franchise had in 22 seasons prior to his arrival.
And even with a new head coach in Mike Brown and an adjustment of having the ball in his hands less, Brunson has thrived.
Though there’s often talk about how hard it is to win with a diminutive point guard, Brunson has quieted doubters with clutch play. In high pressure situations, with elite defenses game-planning to short circuit the Knicks offense, Brunson has delivered constantly.
New York has added the pieces around Brunson to form a contender, but the NBA Cup was a reminder that the Knicks point guard is the ultimate factor that gives this team a chance to make the NBA Finals for the first time in 27 years.
Third option
The Knicks' pecking order at the top has always been clear. Brunson is the team’s go-to scorer, and Karl-Anthony Towns is a clear number two option. Behind that, the Knicks have a committee of role players that are all capable of taking over the scoring on any given night.
One player making a case to break out into a larger role is OG Anunoby.
New York’s resident “demon” proved to be the catalyst in the club’s cup run, scoring 52 points in the two Las Vegas games. Though his overall scoring (16.2 points) is down from last season, Anunoby’s mix of finishing ability around the rim with corner three-point shooting has been invaluable to New York’s second-ranked offense.
Dec 16, 2025; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; New York Knicks forward OG Anunoby (8) dunks the ball against the San Antonio Spurs during the Emirates NBA Cup Final at T-Mobile Arena / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
We’ve seen these types of offensive outbursts before with Anunoby.
He emerged when Brunson was sidelined for 15 games with an ankle injury last year, averaging 23.2 points on 47.6 percent shooting. The question is can the defensive stalwart be a consistent source of offense for New York?
Anunoby had a relatively quiet offensive showing in the playoffs last year, but under a new coach, he could be due for an offensive breakout.
Surprise contributor
The Cup does carry some similarities to the playoffs -- with the high stakes nature of the games, rotations get cut short and minutes for core players increase.
Early in the season, the NBA Cup showcased who New York's new head coach trusts to be on the floor. As an example, Guerschon Yabusele saw just four total minutes in the final two games, including a DNP on Tuesday night.
As expected, Mitchell Robinson and Jordan Clarkson earned minutes off the bench, but an unexpected ascender in New York’s rotation during these games was Tyler Kolek.
The second year point guard scored 14 points in the title game and found himself on the floor in crunch time. Coach Brown went to two point guard lineups with Brunson and Kolek on the floor at the same time often. The decision paid off as Kolek gave the Knicks another ball-handler to ease the full-court pressure applied to Brunson and make plays.
Coming into the season, the Knicks needed one of their recent draft picks to step into a rotation spot. Kolek could use the tournament as a building block to gain consistent playing time.
One concern is Kolek’s play adds to an already crowded backcourt. With Clarkson and the injured duo of Miles McBride and Landry Shamet part of the rotation, it will be tricky for all of them to see minutes, but that’s a good problem to have.
The Knicks can trust Kolek to be on the floor in serious moments.
Another day, another mention of the Vancouver Canucks’ lack of a practice facility. As the last NHL team without a plan for a dedicated facility, with the Calgary Flames in the process of constructing one along with their new arena, Vancouver has become somewhat infamous for their practice structure — doing-so at Rogers Arena or UBC if their main venue is booked. The topic has garnered traction throughout various points of different seasons, including now, after former Canuck Quinn Hughes spoke on his new team’s practice facility.
“It’s a great facility, and I’m looking forward to nothing being new — just kind of not knowing where to park and where the entrance is and all that stuff,” Hughes said of the Minnesota Wild’s practice facility. “Yeah, it’s a beautiful facility for sure.”
This isn’t the first time a former Canuck has been asked about practice facilities, especially not in the past year. Former Canucks Head Coach Rick Tocchet made it clear that a practice facility was something he was hoping for in negotiations to stay in Vancouver. When he ultimately parted ways with the Canucks in order to join the Philadelphia Flyers as Head Coach back in May, he spoke excitedly about his new team’s practice set-up.
“I walked around that facility [and] there’s so many tools to work with,” he said back in May. “There’s three sheets of ice. Those are attractive things to help me be a better coach. I can’t speak for the past, all I know is what I see now and the people I deal with now and it excites me.”
At one point during the off-season, the Canucks seemed dedicated to tracking a facility down. President of Hockey Operations Jim Rutherford outlined some plans during the pre-season explaining that they’d prefer a place somewhat closer to downtown Vancouver itself.
“We’re open to any area within a half-hour drive of downtown Vancouver,” Rutherford said during an episode of the 100% Hockey Podcast with John Shannon and Daren Millard. “Since I’ve been here, we’ve worked on this, and we’ve come close to a point where we could get one, but there is always political reasons or this and that.”
Another recent occurrence that has re-ignited this topic’s relevance is the recent announcement of Vancouver Whitecaps FC’s MOU with the city of Vancouver to discuss building a new stadium and entertainment district out at Hastings Park. Because of the potential plans for Hastings Park, which is within the ideal 20-minute driving distance cited by Rutherford, some have eyed this area as an optimal place for the Canucks to situate their practice facility in.
Whether the Canucks get their practice facility in the near future or not is something that probably won’t be confirmed for a fair amount of time. For now, Rogers Arena and UBC will have to do.
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A new era is officially here for the Buffalo Sabres with the hiring of new general manager Jarmo Kekalainen.
Kekalainen will now have the challenging task of trying to get the Sabres to finally take that next step and get back into the playoffs for the first time since 2011-12.
The Sabres have been having a tough start to the season. At the time of this writing, they are at the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings with a 14-14-4 record and 32 points. With this, it would not be surprising in the slightest if Kekalainen looked to make some changes to the club's roster this season.
When looking at the Sabres' roster, defenseman Bowen Byram has the potential to be a very good trade chip for the Buffalo to dangle to try to improve their roster elsewhere.
Byram is no stranger to the rumor mill, as he was one of the NHL's most talked-about trade candidates during the summer. While he ended up re-signing with the Sabres for two years, he also has the potential to become an unrestricted free agent (UFA) in 2027. Thus, it is fair to wonder if he could be a player the Sabres are open to moving if the right offer comes along.
Byram would have the potential to get the Sabres a very nice return, as he is a 24-year-old top-four defenseman. With this, he could be a popular target for teams looking to upgrade their blueline on the left side.
In 32 games so far this season, Byram has posted six goals, seven assists, 13 points, and 40 blocks.
SAN FRANCISCO — After leading the league in strikeouts and winning a Gold Glove Award, there’s one individual goal still out there for Logan Webb. He wants to win a Cy Young Award, and his preparation to win one in 2026 will begin alongside the two men who took the award home in 2025.
USA Baseball announced on Thursday that the Giants ace will pitch in the 2026 World Baseball Classic, joining a rotation that includes Paul Skenes and Tarik Skubal. Webb was hopeful that he would be part of Team USA next spring, and after some back and forth between the Giants and USA Baseball, an agreement was reached.
Webb has been the most reliable ace in baseball since breaking through in 2021, and he now will get a chance to help Team USA try to get back on top after finishing second in 2023. Skenes was one of the first to sign up for the team and Skubal was added Thursday morning, along with hard-throwing San Diego Padres right-hander Mason Miller.
The announcement comes a week after Giants president of baseball operations Buster Posey said that his preference was for older pitchers to make up the WBC pitching staffs. The Giants have some concerns about their most important player ramping up too early in the spring and risking injury, and Posey had a conversation with Team USA Mark DeRosa recently about Webb’s spot on the team.
“Look, I got to play in it. It’s a great event,” Posey said at the Winter Meetings. “The way I see it, there’s definitely more risk for a pitcher than a position player.”
The Giants didn’t have much of an argument to keep Webb out of the event. Posey and Brandon Crawford are among the Giants stars who have played over the years, and while there’s a greater risk of injury for pitchers, plenty of other aces will participate. The selection of Skubal, who has about $400 million on the line when he hits free agency, made it particularly hard for anyone to argue against Webb participating.
Webb has received notoriously bad run support as a Giant, but he’ll have plenty of help when he takes the mound in red, white and blue. Team USA’s lineup includes Aaron Judge, Cal Raleigh and Bobby Witt Jr., with more big-time selections coming. The team’s first game will be March 6 in Houston against Brazil.
While rosters still are being finalized, the Giants expect both Jung Hoo Lee (South Korea) and Heliot Ramos (Puerto Rico) to participate. Rafael Devers, Willy Adames, Matt Chapman and others are also under consideration for roster spots.
Despite playing on different teams, the iconic trio of Steph Curry, Draymond Green and Klay Thompson still make time to hang out together.
Even after Thompson’s departure from the Warriors.
ESPN’s Anthony Slater and Tim MacMahon published a story on Thursday about Thompson’s departure from Golden State and his relationships with his former teammates today and revealed that Curry, Green, Warriors assistant coach Chris DeMarco and some of Thompson’s friends all met up at the veteran guard’s Dallas home last season on Feb. 11 for a private dinner.
Curry, according to ESPN, decided in advance that he would spend the night at Thompson’s house before the Warriors and Mavericks faced off the following day. The visit, perhaps, was needed after Thompson’s seemingly icy departure from Golden State last summer.
“I was like, I’m making sure I get over there,” Curry told ESPN.
“Man. I had to move to Texas to get this guy to come over to my house,” Thompson joked.
The mood throughout the evening, according to ESPN, was light, and featured plenty of games, conversations and Thompson showing his former teammates around his new neighborhood.
“We didn’t need to address any feelings or his departure or anything like that,” Green told ESPN. “It was friends kicking it. He’s showing us, ‘Yeah, this is my life here.’
“But you could tell he’s trying to come to grips with it. It was odd for him.”
The dinner seemingly was a cathartic experience for Curry, who called it an “acknowledgement of the finality.”
“I didn’t go there for that,” Curry explained to ESPN. “But that’s what it turned into.”
“You don’t spend 12 years with your friends and then that just fades,” Thompson said. “That was a really fun moment of last season, [which] was pretty up and down.”
Thompson and the Mavericks then beat the Warriors 111-107 the following day before Golden State got its revenge 10 days later in a 126-102 win over Dallas at Chase Center to cap a four-game season series split.
Curry, Green and the Warriors will make the trip back to Dallas on Christmas Day this season, in the first of three games against the former Splash Brother.
