In a recent article for Bleacher Report, Joe Yerdon ranked each team's goalie tandem heading into the 2025-26 season. The Chicago Blackhawks' tandem of Spencer Knight and Arvid Soderblom received a tough ranking, as they finished at the No. 29 spot.
With this ranking, the Blackhawks only finished ahead of the San Jose Sharks (Yaroslav Askarov & Alex Nedeljkovic), Philadelphia Flyers (Samuel Ersson, Dan Vladar & Ivan Fedotov), and Pittsburgh Penguins (Tristan Jarry & Arturs Silovs).
Teams ranked just ahead of the Blackhawks on Yerdon's list are the Seattle Kraken (Joey Daccord & Philipp Grubauer), Columbus Blue Jackets (Elvis Merzlikins & Jet Greaves), and Buffalo Sabres (Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, Alex Lyon & Devon Levi).
Knight is a young goalie looking to prove that he can be a legitimate NHL starting goalie. In 15 games with the Blackhawks after being acquired from the Florida Panthers in the Seth Jones trade, Knight recorded a 5-8-2 record, a 3.18 goals-against average, and a .893 save percentage. In 95 games over four NHL seasons, the former first-rounder has recorded a 49-33-9 record, a .904 save percentage, and a 2.83 goals-against average.
Soderblom, on the other hand, just landed a two-year, $5.5 million contract this summer after having the best season of his NHL career thus. In 33 games, he recorded a 10-18-7 record and set new career bests with a .898 save percentage and a 3.18 goals-against average.
Overall, while the Blackhawks' goaltending may have some doubters heading into the new season, the potential for them to improve is certainly there. Knight has the tools to blossom into a high-impact goalie, while Soderblom should be able to build off his solid 2024-25 campaign. If both young goalies take steps forward in their development, they very well could move up other goalie rankings in the future.
Last month, former Montreal Canadiens blueliner Josh Gorges was appointed as an assistant coach with his junior team, the Kelowna Rockets. The gritty former defenseman gave an interview to The Gazette’s Stu Cowan, then spoke to RG.org’s Marco D’Amico. Since then, one part of that interview really stuck with me.
A defensive defenseman, Gorges didn’t get to score and celebrate that many goals in his career, but he says one memory that really endures with him is that improbable playoff run in 2009-2010. That was a fantastic time to be a Canadiens fan…
Back then, I still lived in London, England, and this was before I had started writing about the team professionally, and I was just a fan, but a really dedicated one. With the five-hour time difference between Montreal and London, the games would start at midnight on my side of the pond, but I couldn’t even entertain the idea of missing a second of those playoff games. So every other night, I would stay up until at least 3:00 AM to watch my team play.
Early on, it looked like I wasn’t going to do that for much longer, but as Gorges recalls, the Canadiens came back from the 3-1 hole they had dug for themselves in the first round against the Washington Capitals. They fought tooth and nail, but they got there, and when I heard Pierre Houde say, “C’est terminé! Direction Pittsburgh!” I had goosebumps, and it was then that I knew that for me, hockey was much more than a hobby.
The next morning, as I walked to the Upminster train station to make my way to work at the Crown Prosecution Service, I had Anakin Slayd’s “Feels like ‘93” playing out loud on my phone, and believe it or not, I met a couple of Canadiens’ fans on the 10-minute walk, and when the puck dropped on the second round, I wasn’t alone watching it in my couch, I had a couple of friends.
The series with the Pittsburgh Penguins was just as spectacular and irresistible as tired as I was, running on three or four hours of sleep a night on game nights, I didn’t miss a single minute of the action. By the time the Canadiens booked their ticket to the Conference Final against the Philadelphia Flyers, there was a real buzz for the team all the way to London.
Even though the Habs went on to lose that series 4-1, that playoff run left so many people with so many memories. Whether they were on the ice like Gorges, at the Bell Centre like the 21,000 fans who were lucky enough to attend in person, or anywhere else in the world rooting them on, its impact cannot be denied.
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We’re into the month of September, which means a new hockey season is right around the corner.
In the coming weeks, the members of the Florida Panthers who aren’t already in South Florida will arrive back in their hockey home, ready to prepare for a quest to win a third straight Stanley Cup.
Usually, the time between free agency dying down in mid-to-late July and the start of training camp in mid-September tends to be on the quiet side.
Well, Thursday night the Panthers posted a new video to their YouTube channel that had me feeling anything but quiet and calm.
It’s a video of some of the most memorable and exciting moments of Panthers hockey over the past three seasons; what the team is calling their “best AURA plays.”
It was 22 minutes out of my day that felt well spent after watching.
Don’t be surprised to find yourself feeling similarly if you take the time to enjoy the show.
Photo caption: May 24, 2023; Sunrise, Florida, USA; Florida Panthers left wing Matthew Tkachuk (19) celebrates after scoring the game-winning goal against the Carolina Hurricanes during the third period in game four of the Eastern Conference Finals of the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs at FLA Live Arena. (Sam Navarro-Imagn Images)
In an interesting new twist, top Philadelphia Flyers center prospect Jett Luchanko is no longer the captain of his junior team, the OHL Guelph Storm.
That distinction now belongs to forward Charlie Paquette, a 19-year-old who was drafted 222nd overall by the Dallas Stars in the 2025 NHL Draft back in June.
Additionally, Guelph also announced that defensemen Quinn Beauchesne and Rowan Topp would wear the 'A' for the Storm, which means Luchanko isn't included in the team's leadership group at all.
The timing of all this is interesting, considering there was an uproar - a brief one, to be clear - when we had the brief false start on 19-year-olds being allowed to play in the AHL this season.
That isn't the case, so the fear for Flyers fans, and perhaps the Flyers themselves, is that they would have to put up with another year of NHL or bust with Luchanko.
The 2024 first-round pick showed his stuff in a brief AHL cameo last year with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, too, scoring three assists in nine regular season games and adding six more in seven postseason contests. That's the unfortunate part.
But, nobody would be as vehemently against Luchanko returning to the OHL if he was on a better team than the storm, like Denver Barkey and Oliver Bonk's London Knights last season.
One nice hypothetical landing spot for Luchanko, should the Storm trade away the prized Flyers prospect to rebuild, is the Windsor Spitfires.
That roster features fellow Flyers prospect Jack Nesbitt, and returnees like Liam Greentree, Ilya Protas, A.J. Spellacy, and top 2026 draft prospect Ethan Belchetz.
That alone is plenty of talent to surround Luchanko and help him hone his offensive game for another year without throwing him fully into the deep end at the NHL level. It's not to say he can't swim, because he probably can, but we haven't seen that one way or the other.
Any Luchanko trade talk at this time is purely speculation, but the coincidences are starting to line up in favor of a move that benefits him and the Flyers.
After that, regardless of any trade, it will be time for the AHL, and, later on, the NHL.
Colorado Rockies shortstop Ezequiel Tovar throws to first base during a game against the Pittsburgh Pirates last month. (David Zalubowski / Associated Press)
Anyone getting off the elevator outside the Colorado Rockies’ clubhouse in the bowels of Coors Field is greeted by the logo from the 2007 World Series, the only one the Rockies have played in.
Around the corner, near the entrance to the visitor’s clubhouse, the walls are covered with drawings of Dante Bichette, Todd Helton, Larry Walker, Andrés Galarraga and other former Rockie greats. The youngest of those players is 52 and has hasn’t played for a dozen seasons, giving the whole tableau the feel of a tattered and worn museum exhibition.
Colorado has made the playoffs just twice in the last 15 seasons, winning no postseason games over that span. The Rockies last won a playoff game in 2009.
This year the team has the worst record in the majors, have already lost 101 games for a third straight season and their run differential of minus-364 heading into the weekend is the worst for any team in at least 125 years. The team’s fWAR, or FanGraphs wins above replacement, is a big-league low 2.0.
Yet the Rockies, who were eliminated from playoff contention long ago, just may factor in who wins the National League West. Because after they finish a three-game series with the second-place Padres this weekend in Denver, they come to Dodger Stadium for three games with the first-place Dodgers beginning Monday. After that, they head to San Diego for four more with the Padres.
But as the Rockies prepare for those showdowns, they are focused on neither a glorious past nor a dismal present. The team is concentrating instead on what it insists will be a bright future, one that will arrive sooner rather than later.
“We can win,” said Warren Schaeffer, the team’s interim manager. “We can absolutely win here. And we’re going to win here. It’s just a matter of time.
“But why not get the ball moving right now in the right direction?”
The big question is how to get that ball rolling. The team has finished with a winning record just twice since 2010 and last three seasons have been the three worst in franchise history.
Digging out of that deep hole, said veteran infielder Kyle Farmer, will first require changing the culture and expectations around the team by refusing to accept losing. That may already be happening: The Rockies’ 11 wins in August were a modest total but it was the most in a month for them this season. Building on that momentum gives the team something to play for in the final month of an otherwise lost season.
“We’re starting to create an identity with the team,” Farmer said. “The last part of the year is really important as long as we can keep winning games.”
Colorado Rockies interim manager Warren Schaeffer stepped in after Bud Black was fired following a 7-33 start to this season. (David Zalubowski / Associated Press)
How fast the Rockies rebuild will depend in part on the depth of their farm system and how they use it. That’s not exactly encouraging news since Colorado’s collection of prospects ranks in the bottom seven in baseball in multiple surveys.
And that rating has slipped precipitously since the start of the season.
That’s a problem for a team that has spent more than $146 million on its opening-day payroll just once. The Dodgers agreed to pay Shohei Ohtani alone $70 million a season, although much of that money is deferred. To compete, the Rockies are going to have to strengthen their farm system and loosen their wallet.
“You constantly look at how you’re going to carve the path forward,” said Chris Forbes, the team’s director of player development. “Right now is a great time to evaluate what we have that’s ready, or maybe closer to ready, in the farm system and who you want to go forward with as you try to clear your path for 2026.
“I think that’s the space that we’re in right now. You truly have to find out who you want to go forward with.”
For a small-market team like Colorado, the margin for error is small since its can’t afford to buy its way out of a mistake. For that reason Forbes said he takes character and makeup into account in both signing and promoting players.
“You try to kind of grow that way. And some guys are going to get it and rise to the top. And some guys are going to fall on the wayside and kind of point fingers,” Forbes said.
As for the second part of that equation, the spending part, that will be determined by general manager Bill Schmidt, a former coach at Anaheim’s Magnolia High who has never seen his team finish higher than last in the National League West as full-time GM. Schmidt declined multiple requests to be interviewed for this story.
Yet despite the losing, the Rockies are drawing more 30,000 fans a game at Coors Field, 15th in the majors and better than the playoff-bound Detroit Tigers.
“A lot of time they are cheering for the other team,” Schaeffer said of the fans. “But they are here.”
The nucleus of young, talented players the team has to build around could soon have those fans rooting for the home team.
Catcher Hunter Goodman, 25, has made great strides in his first full big-league season and led the team with 27 homers and 83 RBIs while slashing .280/.326/.526 heading into the Padres’ series. Shortstop Ezequiel Tovar, 24, is an exciting player who won a Gold Glove and led the league in doubles last season and Kyle Karros, the son of former Dodger star Eric Karros, has played well since his promotion from the minors last month.
Karros, 23, is one of 17 players on the Rockies’ roster who has yet to turn 26 and one of 17 who spent at least part of the season in the minors. How fast those young, inexperienced players develop will determine how fast Colorado becomes competitive.
Colorado Rockies catcher Hunter Goodman leads the team with 27 homers and 83 RBIs in his first big league season. (David Zalubowski / Associated Press)
Schaeffer, 40, also figures to have a big say in how long that turnaround takes. A baseball lifer, Schaeffer has spent the professional portion of that life with the Rockies, who took him in the 38th round of the MLB draft — a round which no longer exists — the same year Colorado made its lone trip to the World Series, where it was swept by the Boston Red Sox. An infielder, Schaeffer hit .214 over six minor league seasons before retiring as a player to become a minor league manager in the Rockies system.
Schaeffer, who has the mien of Marine drill instructor, is animated and intense. But he can also be as calm and understanding as a high school counselor, making him a good fit for one of the youngest rosters in the major leagues. And while he’s popular in the clubhouse, he’ll likely remain an interim manager until a decision is made on a full-time replacement for Black this fall.
“He’s done a great job changing the culture around here,” said Farmer, a former Dodger who played for two other teams before signing a one-year deal the Rockies last fall. “You know it starts at the top and Shake has done an incredible job.
“I think guys are going to look forward to seeing him next spring starting [with] a clean slate and building a culture from the get-go.”
In the meantime, Schaeffer said the rest of this season will be as much about learning as it will be about winning.
“You can either look at it as we’re trying to not do something like not have the worst record — and you make bad decisions when you think like that,” he said. “[Or] you can also think these games provide an unbelievable opportunity for the players to earn a position for next year and the future when we become a winning team."
The walls outside the Rockies clubhouse testify to the fact the team has won before. The challenge now is to make it happen again.
Expectations for the Boston Celtics’ 2025-26 season have been tempered so greatly by the offseason roster changes that we’d go so far as to suggest it’s nearly impossible for this team to fall short of expectations.
If the Celtics thrive behind the remaining core members of the championship squad and get increased contributions from the younger players who are about to step into larger roles, the season will be deemed a success. If things go awry and the team is forced to prioritize longer-term goals while also emerging with a decent draft pick, the season likewise could be viewed as a success.
In our mind, multiple things would have to occur to even ponder if the team fell short of expectations:
Jayson Tatum endures any sort of setback in his recovery that hinders his ability to be at full strength for the start of the 2026-27 season.
Younger players on the roster show limited signs of development, leaving the team uncertain on exactly who might comprise the depth pieces on Boston’s next title-contending team.
Remaining core players struggle in increased roles and don’t make the sort of progress that could accelerate Boston’s return to contender status.
It’s hard for us to envision any of these options happening. Tatum has aggressively attacked his rehab, and his progress will serve as a perpetual reminder that brighter days are ahead, regardless of how the team fares in his absence. Younger players have expressed excitement in being able to show what they are capable of this season and we expect every roster player will embrace increased opportunity this season.
The Celtics already extended Joe Mazzulla, giving him the security to endure any bumps in the road. New ownership seems committed to keeping much of the brain trust of this organization in place, which should help the team navigate this mini-transition period as well.
We’re strangely invigorated to watch how the season unfolds without the stress of championship-or-bust expectations. While we’ve been spoiled by the success of this team, we suspect fans will embrace a group that tries to mask a talent drain by playing harder and faster.
We’ll see how the Celtics navigate periods of turbulence and whether that changes how we view the season. The margin for success is razor-thin given the absence of Tatum and the depth depletion. But we suspect it will be very hard for this team to fall short of expectations. Questions will be answered, paths will be charted. And then expectations for future seasons can start to climb.
Now it’s our panel’s turn to finish the sentence. The Celtics will fall short of expectations this season if …
Darren Hartwell, Managing Editor
Any starter misses any significant time due to injury.
If Jaylen Brown goes down, you’re looking at Baylor Scheierman playing meaningful minutes. If Derrick White or Payton Pritchard are sidelined, Hugo Gonzalez may need to take on a larger role.
Boston’s top five by itself stacks up favorably with the rest of the league, but there’s not much depth behind that group, which means the margin for error is razor-thin.
Michael Hurley, Web Producer
If we’re looking at Tankathon in March, then that’ll be disappointing.
With Jaylen Brown and Derrick White, the Celtics shouldn’t be worse than a .500 team. There are some holes on the roster, but they should still be better than your Wizards and Hornets of the world. And last year, a .500 season was good enough to nab the seventh seed in the East.
A 41-41 season is nothing to get too jazzed up about in Boston, but the floor for 2025-26 — even without Tatum — shouldn’t be much lower than that.
Sean McGuire, Web Producer
They miss the playoffs.
I don’t think we should expect to be looking at NBA Draft Lottery odds in late-February or early March, although AJ Dybantsa teaming up with Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown in 2026-27 would be pretty sweet. Still, are there really eight Eastern Conference teams with more talent or winning pedigree than Joe Mazzulla’s side? I have a hard time believing that.
There’s something to be said about continuing the longest active postseason run in the NBA (11 consecutive seasons).
Josh Canu, Media Editor
Jaylen Brown or Derrick White miss significant time.
The roster is as thin as it has ever been, and if one of your top two dogs go down with injury, it could get ugly quickly. White has proven to be an ironman, but Jaylen stepping into the Tatum role for the entire season does have me a little concerned with his durability.
Max Lederman, Content Producer
You set the expectations too high!
This is a unique season for the Celtics and their fans, so I implore you to just have fun watching basketball and focus on any positives you can find.
Kevin Miller, VP, Content
Turnovers and lack of rebounding.
I’m concerned about giving up a bunch of second-chance points and having some live-ball turnover moments that could change wins to losses.
Adam Hart, EP, Content Strategy
Neemias Queta and Chris Boucher are overmatched upfront.
Jayson Tatum’s rebounding and length defending is gone and the team must find ways to mask that.
Baltimore Orioles Cal Ripken shakes hands with fans as he does a victory lap around Baltimore's Camden Yards after breaking Lou Gehrig's record of 2,130 consecutive games on Sept. 6, 1995. (Ron Edmonds / Associated Press)
Rex Hudler pestered plate umpire Larry Barnett for a game-used baseball, one with the orange laces and number “8” stamp to commemorate Baltimore Orioles shortstop Cal Ripken Jr. breaking Lou Gehrig’s consecutive games record in Camden Yards on Sept. 6, 1995, to no avail.
“He said, ‘No way, you’re gonna have to catch a third out or get a foul ball,’ ” said Hudler, the Kansas City Royals broadcaster who played second base for the Angels the night Ripken broke Gehrig’s record. “ ‘They’re all numbered and counted, and you can’t have one.’ ”
Hudler thought he had one when Orioles first baseman Rafael Palmeiro sent a flare into shallow right-center field with two outs in the bottom of the third inning, but Angels right fielder Tim Salmon called him off and made the catch.
“We’re running into the dugout, and I’m yelling at him, ‘What are you doing? That was my ball!’ ” Hudler said. “And King Fish had this big grin on his face, he kept running and said, ‘Haha Hud, you’ll get one.’ ”
When the game became official after the top of the fifth, and Ripken passed the Iron Man by playing in his 2,131st consecutive game, Hudler took the field and watched as Ripken took an iconic victory lap around the stadium, high-fiving fans, hugging teammates and delaying the game for 22 minutes, 15 seconds.
Ripken shook hands with every player in the Angels dugout — ”And when does that happen?” he said on a Hall-of-Fame podcast — and shared a warm embrace with Angels hitting coach and Hall-of-Famer Rod Carew.
Rex Hudler, above during a game against the Orioles in 1996, played three seasons for the Angels. (Mark J. Terrill / Associated Press)
“I told him, ‘You’ve been great for all these years and very consistent in what you’ve done, and one day I’ll see you in the Hall of Fame,’ ” Carew said. “What a record that was, to be healthy for that long.”
Hudler was standing at his second-base spot when Ripken started his lap, but by the time Ripken returned to his dugout and was greeted by his family, Hudler was standing on the pitcher’s mound.
“I had been in this little dream for however long it took him to go around the stadium, wandering, watching him, following him, just enamored by what he was doing, and the next thing I know, I’m on the mound,” Hudler said. “I quietly turned and walked back to my position.”
When the game finally resumed, the Orioles loaded the bases with two outs, and up stepped Ripken, who hit a two-run homer off Angels pitcher Shawn Boskie in the fourth inning.
“Palmeiro was on second base and he said, ‘Hud, it’s only fitting, look who’s coming up, the baseball gods are here,’ ” Hudler said.
Only this time, the gods smiled on Hudler, who was actually drafted ahead of Ripken in 1978 — Hudler was a first-round pick of the New York Yankees and Ripken a second-round pick of the Orioles — but spent his entire 13-year big-league career as a utility man, while Ripken became a Hall-of-Famer.
“I went back to my position and said, ‘God, have him hit it to me, please,’ and Cal flared the first pitch over my head toward right-center,” Hudler said. “It was kind of a loopy liner, and I remember running, looking up at the ball, and it was in slow motion. I had never fielded a ball in my 21-year career that was in slow motion.
“As I’m running, I’m thinking, ‘That’s a six-carat diamond,’ it looked like a jewel, and I told myself, ‘Hud, you’re gonna break your neck for this. You can’t let this ball drop.’ My adrenaline and speed carried me under it, and when I caught it on the run, I shook my arm three times in disbelief. God answered my prayer on the field! It was unbelievable.”
Hudler sprinted off the field, ignoring teammates wanting to high-five him in the dugout for saving two runs, and into the visiting clubhouse, where he stashed the ball in his locker for safekeeping.
President Bill Clinton is handed an autographed ball by Baltimore Orioles shortstop Cal Ripken Jr., left, as they meet at the Orioles' clubhouse at Camden Yards on Sept. 6, 1995, prior to the game with the Angels. Looking on at right are the president's daughter, Chelsea Clinton, and Vice President Al Gore. (Wilfredo Lee / Associated Press)
“I secured my precious gem,” Hudler said. “I have never caught a ball more valuable than that.”
Ripken, it turned out, was a gift that kept on giving. After the Angels’ 4-2 loss, Hudler was speaking to writers when an Orioles clubhouse attendant interrupted the scrum to present Hudler a shiny black Ripken bat signed with the message:
“To Hud, we go a long way back, you going ahead of me in the draft and all, but now, I feel like you feel when you strike out with the bases loaded: visibly shaken! All my best, Cal Ripken Jr., Sept. 6, 1995.”
Hudler was floored. He had asked Ripken for an autographed bat that May, when the Orioles were in Anaheim, and he was surprised one didn’t arrive when the Angels were in Baltimore in early June and the Orioles were in Anaheim again in late-August.
“I was speechless, I didn’t know what to say,” the always loquacious Hudler said. “Cal signed a bat for me that night. It was so classy. How could he think of me?”
The bat and the ball he caught to end the fifth inning — Hudler got the ball signed two years later — are featured in a special Cal Ripken shrine in the man-cave of Hudler’s Kansas City home.
And to think, this would not have been possible had a work stoppage not delayed the start of the 1995 season until late April and reduced the season to 144 games, placing the Angels, with no Orioles rainouts, in Baltimore when Ripken tied and broke Gehrig’s record.
Tim Salmon, above batting during the last game of the regular season in 1995, was part of an Angels team that last 29 of its last 43 games and lost a one-game playoff for the AL West to the Seattle Mariners. (J.D. Cuban / Getty Images)
“I looked at the schedule in April, and a light went off in my brain that these would be historical games of great magnitude,” Hudler said. “I told our old traveling secretary, Frank Sims, that I needed three extra rooms in Baltimore for Sept. 4-6, and he goes, ‘Kid, whattaya mean? That’s so far away.’
“I kind of played it off. I didn’t want to tell him why. Then a week before we went to Baltimore, Frank asked me if I wanted to sell any of those rooms because there were no rooms available. I said, ‘Heck no!’ Three of my best friends who I grew up with in Fresno came out with their wives. Great memories for them, too.”
As cool as it was to be part of Ripken’s historic night, it was bittersweet for the Angels, who were in the middle of an epic collapse in which they lost 29 of their last 43 games and blew an 11-game American League West lead, joining the 1978 Red Sox, 1969 Cubs, 1964 Phillies and 1951 Brooklyn Dodgers in baseball infamy.
Their 5-3 win over the Orioles in the Sept. 4 series opener snapped a nine-game losing streak. The Angels lost nine straight again from Sept. 13-23 to fall two games behind the Seattle Mariners.
They rallied to win their last five regular-season games to force a one-game playoff for the division, but they were crushed by the Mariners and then-ace Randy Johnson 9-1 in that game.
“That was a painful swoon, and it cost us the division, but to be part of that Ripken celebration when your team was struggling so badly took the pain away,” Hudler said. “I was honored to play in those games, because I’m sure one of those lineup cards is in Cooperstown, and that’s the only way I ever got into the Hall of Fame.”
This story originally appeared in "Memories and Dreams," the official magazine of the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum. For more stories like this about legendary heroes of the game, subscribe to "Memories and Dreams" by joining the Museum's membership program at www.baseballhall.org/join.
In one of my earlier attempts at playing NBA 2K26, I noticed how red Luka Dončić’s face was. The sweat was visible, as if he were playing an actual basketball game.
Very realistic, very detailed. The kind of details those who grew up in the ’80s playing games like Double Dribble may have once envisioned on their screens. The enhanced visuals are just a sample of a new gaming experience.
All versions of 2K26 are available for purchase Friday. Those who bought the “Superstar” or “Leave No Doubt” deluxe editions were able to access the game on Aug. 29. Oklahoma City Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is this year’s cover athlete on the game’s Standard Edition. Chicago Sky star Angel Reese is the on the cover of the WNBA Edition.
Carmelo Anthony, who will be inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame on Saturday, is the cover athlete for the Superstar Edition, an exclusive that includes 100,000 virtual currency (VC), a digital form of currency used to purchase upgrades within the game. All three athletes made the cover of the Leave No Doubt Edition, a special release that includes everything in the Superstar Edition plus an additional 35,000 VC.
Developed by Visual Concepts, 2K26 picks up with enhancements in the realism of the gameplay from 2K25. The defensive improvements I liked from last year’s game are better and individualized. Alex Caruso’s on-ball defense, for example, doesn’t resemble Lu Dort’s defensive tendencies. The overall movement looks and feels better, but the on-ball defense and ability to contest shots are two of the more noticeable improvements 2K focused on this year — the two that I liked most.
The changes in this year’s version of the game aren’t drastic, but they are detectable enough to offer a new experience for those who enjoy the 2K franchise.
Gameplay
The individuality added to player movements has improved from last year with the ProPlay system that takes players’ moves and tendencies and incorporates them into the game. Some of this is best seen with some of the NBA legends. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s skyhook looks as authentic as ever, as does Hakeem Olajuwon’s “Dream Shake.” Players can control these individualized post moves.
The continued tweaks in this area make the game less robotic. Players can also decelerate on their Euro step, meaning players like Gilgeous-Alexander have more control of how they draw fouls.
The movement on defense is much better, and physical defenders can use their bodies more realistically. The drive-and-kick game was also a lot of fun. Improved artificial intelligence makes how defenses and offenses react on drives to the basket feel more realistic. Shooters are able to find their spots for corner 3s, and when players like Gilgeous-Alexander or Dončić drive, multiple defenders flood the paint.
“The drive-and-kick game was a pretty big objective for the AI team this year, in this new drive-and-kick intelligence module, as we call it,” Visual Concepts game director Mike Wang said. “Trying to model that the right players get into the lane, you know, you have to collapse, or they’re going to kill you inside. Those same players usually have great court vision; they’re finding spot-up shooters and perimeter (shooters), so, just trying to model that behavior.”
The feel of the WNBA game is different from the NBA game. The timing is different around the rim, but it was fun playing with a different style and pace. The shooting from the perimeter is the same, but you’ll need to be skilled when getting shots off in the paint.
Shooting
The shooting meter with timing based on landing in a green shot window is another feature that adds realism to 2K26. “Green or Miss” returns.
There was a time in basketball video games when any shot near the rim was nearly guaranteed to be a make. Those attempts no longer automatic scores. Additionally, higher-difficulty shots are tougher to make, as the timing and defense on perimeter shooting is better. Those who master playing defense will notice improved gameplay that helps make shooting more challenging.
Closeouts are better, but gamers can counter that. Shots can be rushed, but catch-and-shoot situations have gameplay options to where shooting is more in control of the gamer and does not feel left up to chance.
“The main goal there was just to make sure that the results of what happens in the court is up to the gamer,” Wang said. “If you take good shots, and you take shots with the right players with higher attributes, and you master timing, then you’ll be effective.
“That was one of the main goals with the green window in general. Take away any kind of randomness or anything that would hold people back from being able to put up some crazy numbers if they were really good at it.”
Game modes
The biggest change to the MyTeam mode is having men and women on the same team. Shaquille O’Neal can have Angel Reese as a teammate. One popular combination is expected to be Stephen Curry and Caitlin Clark. The mode also includes WNBA legends like Lisa Leslie, so there is a good mix of players to use. It’s a fun mode.
MyPlayer adds some variety with certain layup styles and different ways to build your player. You can model your player after a current player using the new “Build by Badges” tool, which allows gamers to form a player based on specific attributes in addition to build specialization that allows players to focus on finishing, shooting, playmaking, defense or rebounding as individual areas to improve.
The City mode has been updated, as well. I also enjoyed the MyNBA Eras, which allows gamers to use teams from different NBA periods — including the early 1980s (the Magic Johnson/Larry Bird era) and stops through the days of prime Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, LeBron James and Curry — in today’s game.
Conclusion
I was so impressed with last year’s improvements that my expectations for 2K26 were tame. However, I came away enjoying this version much more than last year’s.
The realism of player movement, AI improvements and the modes creating NBA/WNBA combinations were good. The gameplay for the WNBA is realistic. It doesn’t play just like the NBA game, nor should it. If you liked 2K25, you’ll enjoy this year’s version of the game.
The Baltimore Orioles' Cal Ripken Jr. waves to the crowd at Camden Yards as the sign in center field reads 2,131, signifying Ripken had broken Lou Gehrig's record of playing in 2,130 consecutive games. (Denis Paquin / Associated Press)
Jayson Stark was 16 years into what is now a 46-year Hall of Fame baseball-writing career when he walked into Baltimore’s Camden Yards on the night of Sept. 6, 1995, knowing exactly what was about to happen and having no idea what to expect.
Baseball’s most iconic moments are usually spontaneous in nature — the thunderbolt of Freddie Freeman’s walk-off grand slam in Game 1 of last October’s World Series or Kirk Gibson’s World Series Game 1-winning shot off Dennis Eckersley in 1988; Hank Aaron’s record-breaking 715th homer in 1974; the climax to Don Larsen’s World Series perfect game in 1956.
But Orioles shortstop Cal Ripken Jr. breaking New York Yankees legend Lou Gehrig’s consecutive-games streak to become baseball’s all-time Iron Man 30 years ago? Heck, you could see this one coming 2,131 miles away.
“Baseball history is normally unexpected — you don’t know when it’s going to be made, how it’s going to be made — and when it happens, that’s where the goose bumps come in,” said Stark, who writes for The Athletic and was a baseball columnist for the Philadelphia Inquirer in 1995.
“But in this game, everybody walked through the gates knowing exactly what was going to happen and when it was going to happen. The game was going to be halfway over, Ripken was going to have this record, and what more was there going to be? And boy, was I wrong. I’ve never been more wrong about any night I’ve spent at the ballpark.”
Cal Ripken Jr. acknowledges the fans as he gets a standing ovation for playing in his 2,131st consecutive game, breaking the record set by Yankees legend Lou Gehrig. (Focus On Sport / Getty Images)
Three decades after he broke Gehrig’s record by playing in his 2,131st consecutive game against the Angels, a streak that began in 1982, Ripken insists there was no plan for how he would celebrate when the game became official.
But neither he nor Major League Baseball could have written a better script for what transpired after Orioles second baseman Manny Alexander caught Damion Easley’s popup to end the top of the fifth inning, and blue-collar Baltimore witnessed the passing of the Iron Man torch to its lunch-pail-carrying son.
As a sellout crowd of 46,272 that included President Clinton, Vice President Al Gore and Hall of Famers Joe DiMaggio and Frank Robinson rose to its feet and the banners on the B&O Warehouse behind the right-field bleachers changed from 2,130 to 2,131, fireworks erupted and balloons and streamers soared into the air.
Ripken had jogged into the dugout but emerged for eight curtain calls, waving to the crowd and tapping his heart. He took off his jersey and gave it to his wife, Kelly, near the dugout. He hoisted his 2-year-old son, Ryan, into his arms and kissed his 5-year-old daughter, Rachel. He waved to his parents, Cal Sr. and Vi, in an upstairs luxury suite.
“It was really weird to have a stoppage in the middle of the game — it was like a rain delay,” Ripken said on a recent Hall of Fame podcast. “I kept getting called out for curtain calls, and Rafael Palmeiro said, ‘You’re gonna have to take a lap around this ballpark.’ Bobby Bonilla was standing right there and said, ‘Yeah, you gotta do that.’ ”
The teammates came out of the dugout and pushed Ripken down the first-base line, and off Ripken went on a victory lap around the stadium that delayed the game for 22 minutes and 15 seconds and helped pull baseball out of the doldrums caused by a nasty work stoppage that forced the cancellation of the 1994 World Series.
Cal Ripken Jr. waves to the crowd at Baltimore's Camden Yards in the middle of the fifth inning of the Orioles' game against the Angels on Sept. 6, 1995. (Denis Paquin / Associated Press)
Ripken started down the right-field line, shaking hands with fans in the front row. Around the outfield he went, greeting police officers and members of the grounds crew. Some fans tumbled out of the bleachers as Ripken leaped to high-five them. He exchanged hugs with the Orioles relievers.
“You start shaking hands and seeing people in the stands you had seen before — some you knew, some who you just knew their faces — and then it became more of a human experience,” said Ripken, who had homered in the fourth inning. “By the time I got around and past the bullpen, I [couldn't] have cared less if the game started again.”
Around the left-field corner and down the left-field and third-base lines Ripken went, high-fiving fans, shaking the hands of everyone in the Angels’ dugout and embracing Angels hitting coach and Hall of Famer Rod Carew and slugger Chili Davis. Ripken even hugged the umpires.
The burst of a thousand flash bulbs lit up the stadium. Fans wiped away tears as they watched Ripken circle the field, and the thunderous applause never waned throughout the delay.
“The way the whole thing developed, it just felt organic and authentic, because it spoke to the power of numbers in baseball,” Stark said. “That was so much more than a number. It connected the moment to one six decades earlier. It connected Cal Ripken to freaking Lou Gehrig. It evokes memories and emotions unlike numbers in any sport.”
Even ESPN chose the pictures unfolding in Camden Yards over a thousand words, with ever-garrulous announcer Chris Berman turning off his microphone for 19 minutes before finally saying, “A moment that will live for 2,131 years … we will never see anything like this again.”
Ripken amassed 3,184 hits and 431 homers during his 21-year career. He won a World Series title in 1983, an American League rookie of the year award in 1982 and AL most valuable player awards in 1983 and 1991. He was a 19-time All-Star, two-time Gold Glove Award winner and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2007.
Baltimore shortstop Cal Ripken Jr. stands with his Orioles teammates in front of the sign reading "2131" during postgame ceremonies celebrating Ripken's surpassing of Lou Gehrig's record of 2,130 consecutive games. (Denis Paquin / Associated Press)
But when he reflects on “The Streak,” which grew to 2,632 games before he pulled himself out of the lineup 10 minutes before the Orioles’ regular-season home finale against the Yankees on Sept. 20, 1998, he doesn’t elevate himself over any coal miner or schoolteacher who got up every morning and went to work.
“To me, the meaning of the streak is just showing up every day, being there for your team, trying to meet the challenges of the day,” Ripken said. “A lot of people thought I was obsessed with the streak and was obsessed with Lou Gehrig. I always laugh and say, I’d rather have more home runs than Hank Aaron and more hits than Pete Rose.
“But as an everyday player, there was a sense of responsibility instilled in me by my dad and the Orioles that your job is to come to the ballpark ready to play, and if that manager decides that you can help them win that day by putting you in the lineup, then you play.”
The blue-collar work ethic that fueled The Streak and the class and style Ripken displayed that summer helped revitalize an industry that was still reeling from a devastating strike and long labor dispute that also forced the 1995 season to be reduced to 144 games, with a late April start.
“I think it was the single most important moment in the revival of baseball, the recovery of baseball, from that strike,” Stark said. “People just unloaded on our sport, and I just couldn’t get past the pain that whole season.
“And then Cal Ripken reminded everybody of what makes baseball special and what makes baseball different from every other sport on that night, with that record. The whole sport should be grateful to Cal for what he did.”
This story originally appeared in "Memories and Dreams," the official magazine of the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum. For more stories like this about legendary heroes of the game, subscribe to "Memories and Dreams" by joining the Museum's membership program at www.baseballhall.org/join.
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