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Flyers flat on New Year's Eve, suffer 5-1 loss to Flames

Flyers flat on New Year's Eve, suffer 5-1 loss to Flames originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

The Flyers had a New Year’s Eve dud in Calgary, Alberta.

They were rolled by the Flames, 5-1, Wednesday night at Scotiabank Saddledome.

Travis Konecny scored the club’s lone goal, which made it 2-1 near the midway mark of the game. But Calgary restored order with back-to-back power play goals before second intermission.

The Flyers (20-12-7) were held to one goal for the second time in three games since the holiday break. They were unable to build off their 6-3 win Tuesday night over the Canucks.

Since last season, the Flyers have gone just 3-13-3 in the second game of back-to-back sets (2-3-1 this season).

Rick Tocchet’s club was swept by the Flames (18-18-4) in the two-game regular-season series between the teams. Calgary beat the Flyers, 2-1, at Xfinity Mobile Arena toward the beginning of November when Aleksei Kolosov was in net.

• Samuel Ersson surrendered four or more goals for the sixth time in 15 starts.

He had 20 saves on 25 shots. The 26-year-old wasn’t sharp and the Flyers didn’t help with penalties.

The Flames answered Konecny’s goal with a 5-on-3 power play marker after Cam York was whistled for tripping and Christian Dvorak was hit with a high-sticking penalty four seconds later.

With 3:47 minutes left in the middle stanza, Jamie Drysdale put the puck over the glass and Calgary capitalized again on its man advantage. The Flames were then in full control and that didn’t change in the third period.

Calgary netminder Dustin Wolf faced 26 shots from the Flyers.

• For the 27th time, the Flyers fell down 1-0. They’ve done a good job at picking up points and being mostly competitive, but the slow starts have to be a tad concerning.

• Noah Juulsen saw his first game action in two and a half weeks as he entered the lineup for Emil Andrae.

Andrae’s absence was a healthy scratch, a source confirmed to NBC Sports Philadelphia. It was surprising because the Flyers were coming off a win in which Andrae was a plus-2 with four hits over 19:27 minutes.

We’ll see if the 23-year-old defenseman gets back in there against the Oilers.

• The Flyers open the 2026 calendar Saturday when they visit Connor McDavid and Edmonton (3:30 p.m. ET/NBCSP).

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Australia back injured stars as squad for T20 World Cup revealed

  • Cummins, Hazlewood and David named for India and Sri Lanka event

  • Matt Kuhnemann included in spin-heavy 15-player team

Matthew Kuhnemann is in line for a World Cup debut after being included as the biggest surprise selection in Australia’s squad for the T20 World Cup.

As expected, Australia have named superstar pacemen Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood, as well as swashbuckling Tim David, despite injury concerns.

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Angels third baseman Anthony Rendon reportedly agrees to restructure final year of his $245 million contract

ANAHEIM, Calif. — Anthony Rendon has agreed to restructure the final year of his $245 million, seven-year contract with the Los Angeles Angels, a person with knowledge of the decision told The Associated Press on Tuesday night.

The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the Angels hadn’t announced any developments with Rendon, who didn’t play last season following hip surgery.

The team and Rendon have amended the deal to restructure the remaining $38 million owed to the third baseman in 2026, presumably spreading the money over time.

Rendon is still on the roster and continuing to rehab at home in Houston, but his horrendous tenure with the Angels could be over.

Rendon’s massive free-agent contract has paid almost no dividends for the Halos. The former Washington Nationals standout has been injured for the majority of the past five seasons and has played just 257 games in an Angels uniform, batting .242 with 22 homers, 125 RBIs and a .717 OPS.

If Rendon doesn’t play in 2026, he will have appeared in only about a quarter of the Angels’ total games during his seven seasons with the team.

Rendon led the majors in RBIs, earned an All-Star selection and won a World Series ring in 2019 to cap an outstanding four-year stretch for Washington. After playing fairly well for Los Angeles during the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, he was nowhere close to that player in the ensuing four years with the Angels, who haven’t made the playoffs or had a winning record during his tenure.

Rendon dealt with injuries to his groin, his left knee, his left hamstring, his left shin, his oblique muscles, his lower back, both wrists and both hips during the past five years.

Rendon also alienated Angels fans with public comments in which he appeared to say he doesn’t like baseball, although he attempted to clarify his connection to the game as a business relationship that isn’t as important as his family or his religion. Rendon had previously criticized the length of games and excitement level of baseball, saying he doesn’t watch the sport.

Luis Rengifo and Yoán Moncada largely played third base last season for the Angels. Both are currently free agents.

Rendon’s deal might top the long list of high-priced player acquisitions that have worked out terribly for the Angels during owner Arte Moreno’s tenure, including the signings of Gary Matthews Jr., Josh Hamilton and Zack Cozart and unsuccessful trades for Vernon Wells and Justin Upton.

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Steven Samkos nets 600th goal as Nashville Predators roll past Vegas Golden Knights

After falling behind early, the Nashville Predators scored four unanswered goals to sail past the Vegas Golden Knights, 4-2, on Wednesday at T-Mobile Arena. 

Among the comeback efforts, Steven Stamkos scored off a one-time shot on the power play for his 600th career goal. He joins Alexander Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby as the only three active NHL players with 600 career goals. 

On the season, Stamkos has 26 points (18 goals, eight assists) in 39 games. In the month of December, Stamkos has 14 points (11 goals, five assists) in 16 games. 

Nick Perbix netted his third goal of the season to get the Predators on the board, 2-1. Stamkos' one-time shot tied the game. Reid Schaefer gave Nashville their first lead of the game, tipping in a shot from Brady Skjei. 

Michael Bunting tipped in a shot from Nick Blankenburg on the power play to add insurance. It was Bunting's 10th of the year. 

Justus Annunen picked up his third win of the season and second straight, making 29 saves on 31 shots. 

With the win, Nashville moves to fourth place in the Central Division with 40 points and continues to chase down the San Jose Sharks for the final Wild Card spot, who defeated the Minnesota Wild in a shootout and now have 43 points. 

The Predators have a quick turnaround, facing the Kraken in Seattle on Thursday at 9 p.m. CST.