Liverpool, Man City put on a show, Luis Suarez humbles Barcelona
What a weekend! It feels like we say this every weekend, but it was especially true here. Liverpool and Manchester City put on a show, Atletico Madrid (in particular Luis Suarez) made a statement vs. Barcelona and Cristiano Ronaldo made a scene after Manchester United‘s frustrating home draw vs. Everton. Elsewhere, Bayern Munich were beaten (but don’t worry), Borussia Dortmund won (and they should worry), Real Madrid lost again and Paris Saint-Germain‘s billion-dollar team was humbled by Rennes.
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It’s Monday, and Gab Marcotti reacts to the biggest moments in the world of football.
Jump to: Liverpool-Man City | Suarez beats Barcelona | Bayern lose | Milan are back! | Real Madrid woe | Ronaldo’s sulking | PSG misfire | Dortmund need a Plan B | Arsenal need time | Lucky Inter | Leverkusen keep rolling | Napoli still perfect | Chelsea’s depth steps up | Locatelli lifts Juve | Son stars for Spurs
Talent runs rampant when Liverpool play Man City
It finished 2-2, but unless you were a fan of either club, the result wasn’t the main thing. What mattered to most neutrals at the final whistle was the spectacle to which we had been treated by Jurgen Klopp, Pep Guardiola and their players. From Mohamed Salah‘s goal and weak-foot finish, to the Bernardo Silva run and shimmy that set up Phil Foden amid a crowd of red shirts, there was so much to please the eye.
– Ogden: Liverpool vs. Man City is now a great rivalry
But make no mistake about it, this wasn’t just about entertainment, technical ability unleashed or even the aesthetic smorgasbord it was. This was putting talent at the service of a game plan. Guardiola mixed it up, deploying Jack Grealish at center-forward — almost as if to troll the “recognized striker” brigade. City dominated a first half that finished scoreless, but could easily have seen them a couple goals up at the break. It’s not that Liverpool were poor in the first 45 minutes, it’s just that City were superior by several orders of magnitude.
Then came the break and Liverpool got back into the game, powered by an irrepressible Salah, who set up Sadio Mane‘s goal and then notched his own “Goal of the Season” contender. Both times City equalized, first with Foden, then with Kevin De Bruyne. And then, heading to injury time, came Rodri‘s last-ditch block of Fabinho‘s shot, sealing the 2-2 draw.
View the game strictly through the lens of merit and City deserved three points. Not just for the chances created (Alisson had to make several more super saves, De Bruyne sent a wide open header over the bar), but because James Milner stayed on the pitch rather than being sent off.
Milner was deputising for the unavailable Trent Alexander-Arnold and he had one of the roughest afternoons of his (recent) career, with Foden repeatedly getting away from him. Milner was booked once and he twice escaped an additional booking: once when Foden was through at the edge of the box (referee Paul Tierney didn’t even see a foul) and once when he hacked down Bernardo Silva, who did a 180 in the air and landed, literally, on his head.
Milner is a tremendous professional and a very likeable man whose selflessness and versatility, at age 35, are commendable. But that doesn’t change the fact that he was very lucky not to have been sent off (you hope it was just Tierney getting it wrong rather than some misguided attempt by the referee “not wanting to spoil the game” by keeping it 11 vs. 11). With a man advantage, it would have been hard to see City not taking home all three points. But that’s the sort of cold analysis that doesn’t seem right after what these two teams served up. Better then to talk about the performances.
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Julien Laurens struggles to understand why some fans spoil games of football by abusing or spitting at the opposition.
Liverpool started slow, but reacted well, which is what you expect from teams of this caliber. Alexander-Arnold was missed as was, especially in this sort of game, the calm and quality of Thiago Alcantara. But they were fearless, committed and, crucially, unflustered, even after enduring that rough first half. That’s the sort of quality you see in champions.
As for City, it’s important to put this in context. In the past week they faced Chelsea, Paris Saint-Germain and Liverpool — as good a trio of opponents as they’re likely to face this season. They beat Chelsea, lost to PSG and split the spoils with Liverpool, but in each game, they showed the ability to outplay quality opposition for long stretches. And, in a very Pep way, each time they did it with an entirely different look.
At Stamford Bridge, Foden led the line, with Gabriel Jesus and Grealish wide. In Paris, it was Grealish and Riyad Mahrez wide, with Raheem Sterling through the middle. And at Anfield, it was Grealish in the center-forward role, flanked by Foden and Gabriel Jesus. When you can throw so many different looks at the opposition without a drop in performance, you’re on to something special.
It was unmistakable. Having made it 2-0 against his former club, Luis Suarez initially didn’t celebrate — he’d later say it was a mark of respect for Barcelona, where he spent six seasons. Then, as he jogged back, he put his hand to his ear, middle fingers folded in, thumb and pinkie extended in the classic “telephone gesture.” The reference was obvious. It was Ronald Koeman, in the summer of 2020, who told Suarez — then a Barca player — over the course of a two-minute phone call that his services were no longer needed at the club. Not only did Suarez end up leaving for nothing, and joining Atletico, but Barca literally paid him several million just to go away.
It’s obviously not all on Koeman — Barca were (and are) hemorrhaging money, Suarez was on a big contract, the decision was clearly made above the manager’s head — but it was the Dutchman’s voice that Suarez heard on the phone. And that was more than enough.
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Ale Moreno saw nothing from Barcelona to suggest the players ever believed they could beat Atletico Madrid.
In the grand scheme of things, this ignominy is at the bottom of Koeman’s laundry list of problems. It’s not so much the league table — defeat to Atletico leaves them eighth, but if they win their game in hand, they’re fourth — but the Champions League performances (two games, two defeats, zero goal scored and seven conceded) and the one victory in their last six in all competitions. And it’s that intangible sense that the only reason that he’s still in a job is because Barca remain close to insolvency and firing Koeman and hiring a replacement costs money — money they’d rather not spend unless they absolutely have to.
As for the game itself, Koeman’s decisions on Saturday blew up in his face. He stuck the youngster Nico alongside the veteran Sergio Busquets, with Frenkie De Jong out on the right. The idea, you presume, was to slow down Yannick Carrasco, Joao Felix and Thomas Lemar; it did no such thing and, in fact, that’s where Atleti’s first-half goals came from.
Why you would reinvent arguably your most important player in a role he’s never played before is one of the many mysteries of Koeman lore. By the time he fixed it at the break, sending on Sergi Roberto, Atletico were 2-0 up and more than comfortable sitting back.
It’s tough to know where you go from here. There were bright spots that maybe shouldn’t be forgotten. Philippe Coutinho started again and actually looked quite dangerous (though, again, he’s the guy who came off to make way for Ansu Fati with half an hour to go). Fati himself, you hope, will be ready to start after the international break. And sure, this wasn’t a game Barca expected to win (or even get points from), but the sense that Barca don’t score unless Memphis Depay wears his super hero cape, and Barca won’t keep opponents out no matter how many guys Koeman sticks in front of his defence, is hard to shake.
As for Atletico, Simeone deserves a ton of credit both for reading the game correctly — dropping Antoine Griezmann was overdue, but still took courage, as did trusting Joao Felix — and for, lest we forget, generating their first convincing 90-minute performance since August. Yes: between late goals, lucky breaks and refereeing errors, it had been that long since they logged such a comprehensive victory.
Call it the randomness of football. A late Filip Kostic goal meant Bayern were defeated at home by Eintracht Frankfurt. The visitors deserved the win for the intensity, energy and quality they displayed. At the same time, Bayern did not play poorly and, in fact, this game could have gone either way. Yes, both things can be true.
Given the perfectionist Bavarian media, you imagine some will question Julian Nagelsmann’s lack of rotation, or whether Niklas Sule can be an efficient right-back against opponents who sit deep. And sure: when you give up a lead at home and you’re Bayern, there will always be criticism. But as I see it, Kevin Trapp made some unbelievable saves, Bayern created plenty of chances and, as the old cliche goes, the other guys are also trying to win.
So Bayern may as well take it on the chin and move one. As long as it doesn’t become a habit, there’s no reason to be concerned.
Milan’s young guns take down Atalanta as well
Fresh off a crushing — and controversial — Champions League defeat to Atletico Madrid, the last team you’d likely want to face are Atalanta and their mile-a-minute intensity, which Pep Guardiola famously compared to a “trip to the dentist.” But this Milan side, as their coach Stefano Pioli put it, manage to be young without “acting young” and their win over Atalanta was more comprehensive than the 3-2 scoreline suggests.
The likes of Fikayo Tomori, Mike Maignan, Brahim Diaz, Theo Hernandez and Rafael Leao again looked impressive, though for me, it was Sandro Tonali who stole the show, showing just why folks raved about him when he was a teenager, comparing him to one Andrea Pirlo.
They’re also confounding the critics, and it’s worth reminding themselves that they’re doing it without Gianluigi Donnarumma (by choice) as well as Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Olivier Giroud (by injury). Their decision to trust in youth and quality rather than big names is being rewarded with their best start in 17 years.
You wonder what happens when Ibrahimovic returns. He’ll get into the team you imagine, but in many ways this is no longer Zlatan’s Milan. It’s a different side. And if they’re going to succeed, it’s likely he’ll have to adapt to them rather than the other way around.
Real Madrid beaten as their hunt for balance continues
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Luis Garcia explains where Real Madrid fell short in their shock 2-1 defeat against Espanyol.
I’ve lost count of the different versions of Real Madrid that Carlo Ancelotti has served up this season. Against Espanyol on Saturday, he brought Lucas Vazquez back at right-back, moved Nacho inside with David Alaba wide, dropped Casemiro and played a 4-4-2 with Toni Kroos and Luka Modric flanked by Fede Valverde and Eduardo Camavinga. The outcome was a 2-1 defeat that could have been heavier if not for Karim Benzema‘s solo effort and what Ancelotti himself described as Madrid’s “worst performance of the season.”
It certainly was far worse than the shock defeat against Sheriff Tiraspol, a match Real Madrid dominated.
You can see what Ancelotti was trying to do in alternative solutions for when Casemiro needs a break (he was on the bench and, based on his recent performances, he most definitely needed one). It’s just that even with so much talent, you still need chemistry and, at the very least, time together on the pitch.
Taken individually, all his moves, to varying degrees, make sense. Taken collectively, they backfired badly against a well-organised Espanyol. The good news is that they’re still top. The bad news is that at some point he’s going to need to settle on some sort of backbone for this team.
Glum Ronaldo overshadows Man United’s home draw vs. Everton
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Stevie Nicol has doubts over Man United’s squad depth as they give up a lead in their draw with Everton.
When you sign Cristiano Ronaldo and he doesn’t start and you don’t win, you know what’s coming. Just ask the three guys who coached Juve in the past three seasons. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer knows this, and he probably knows that the fact Ronaldo looked disconsolate at the final whistle after the 1-1 draw with Everton has more to do with the home draw than the fact that he came on as a substitute. And that giving him the occasional time off is not just inevitable; it’s the right thing to do at age 36.
– Dawson: Ronaldo can’t rescue Man United off the bench
More problematic, as I see it, were the defensive wobbles from a back line that was only missing Harry Maguire, and a starting XI missing not just Ronaldo, but Paul Pogba and Jadon Sancho, too. Along with Bruno Fernandes, those are United’s most gifted individuals. What made him think Everton would be such pushovers that he could easily dispense with their services?
0:49
Gab Marcotti feels Ole Gunnar Solskjaer needs to stay humble to keep Manchester United fans on his side.
Picking Anthony Martial down the left ahead of Sancho is especially perplexing. United’s record signing has started just one Premier League game since August. Against Rafa Benitez’ predictably organized defensive system, one would have thought Sancho’s individual trickery and creativity would be a better fit than Martial, who these days is much more a forward than a winger anyway.
Who knows? Maybe it suits Solskjaer that folks are needlessly focusing so much on Ronaldo’s body language that they’re overlooking United’s other shortcomings in this game.
Reality bites for Messi, Neymar and Mbappe
Maybe, in the grand scheme of things, it doesn’t really matter since prior to Sunday’s 2-0 defeat at Rennes, PSG had won all eight of their games in Ligue 1. They still have a six-point lead and it’s early October. So why not take the afternoon off against Rennes, who had won just once since August?
It certainly looked as if that’s what Neymar did. Lionel Messi hit the woodwork, but also faded as the game wore on. Kylian Mbappe at least showed some bite after missing a sitter, but goals just before and just after the break condemned PSG. This is something Mauricio Pochettino will have to deal with as the season goes on: with those three guys up front, some games will be boom (a moment of genius) or bust (when’s the next Champions League fixture?).
Maybe the solution will necessarily be more rotation and days off, especially after Champions League fixtures and before international breaks, perhaps with more room for Mauro Icardi. Otherwise, the risk is more days like Sunday, which might not affect who wins the Ligue 1 crown, but is simply deflating.
1:38
Julien Laurens explains all about Kylian Mbappe’s future after the forward confirmed he asked to leave PSG in July.
Three points, but no Plan B for Dortmund vs. Augsburg
Erling Haaland is one of several players unavailable to Borussia Dortmund and coach Marco Rose right now. And because it’s not as if there’s an off-brand Haaland alternative waiting to come off the bench, when he’s not there, Dortmund necessarily need to play differently. That’s not easy to do, but hey, you’re managing in the Bundesliga, your club moved heaven and Earth to get you, you’re Marco Rose — get it done.
Only he hasn’t, and it didn’t work again for the visit of lowly Augsburg. Marco Reus hit the woodwork and Dortmund took plenty of shots, but they did little in terms of attacking fluidity and were helped by a goalkeeping error and the gift of an early penalty. This team is nowhere near their ceiling and there’s still lots of work to be done, both with Haaland and without him.
Arsenal revival continues, but Brighton draw reminds us they need time
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Steve Nicol explains why Arsenal can be happy with a well-earned point at Brighton.
It might seem counter-intuitive to speak of an Arsenal revival on a day when Brighton outplayed them for long stretches in a 0-0 draw, and on a day when they created little on the attacking end (thanks to a poor day at the office from Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang), but this was the sort of game you could easily see them lose earlier in the campaign.
That they didn’t and, in fact, might even have won if Emile Smith Rowe had made a different choice late in the match, speaks volumes about how far they’ve come… and how far they have yet to go. Brighton may not be better than Arsenal man-for-man, but they are a better side right now; they’re a more cohesive unit and better coached, too. The operative words being “right now.”
Mikel Arteta has work to do, but the spirit seems to be there and the raw material. It’s a long way back to the top four, let alone the top.
Inter Milan ride luck — and quadruple change — to beat Sassuolo
For nearly an hour, Simone Inzaghi’s Inter got battered by Sassuolo. (By the way, coach Roberto De Zerbi may have gone, but Alessio Dionisi continues in the same vein, making them one of the most attractive and entertaining sides in Serie A, if not all of Europe.) They went a goal down, Samir Handanovic had to make a stellar save to deny Jeremie Boga and then Handanovic himself was very lucky not to be sent off after colliding with Gregoire Defrel outside the area.
Inzaghi made a quadruple change, sending on Edin Dzeko, Fede Dimarco, Matteo Darmian and Arturo Vidal, and the impact was immediate. Dzeko equalized with his first touch and won the penalty that Lautaro Martinez converted for the 2-1 win.
When stuff like this happens, a coach looks like a genius. But you can’t erase the first hour or so either, nor can you count on Dzeko, who is 35, to save you time and again.
Don’t look now, but Bayer Leverkusen are joint-top of the Bundesliga
But for a draw on opening day and a wild 4-3 defeat to Borussia Dortmund, Bayer Leverkusen have won every game this season and the streak continued with a 4-0 trouncing of Arminia Bielefeld. It was enough to lift them to the top of the table alongside Bayern, and it shows just what an impact Gerardo Seoane has had since joining from Young Boys in the summer.
Seoane has cleaned up Peter Bosz’ mess, gotten the best out of Moussa Diaby, turned Patrik Schick into a goalscorer and helped nurture the prodigy that is Florian Wirtz. All in a few months’ work.
Can they stay at or near the top? It will be tough against better-funded and more talented opposition. But Leverkusen continue to grow and, certainly, a top four finish feels like an attainable goal.
Napoli still the only perfect team in Europe’s big five leagues
You wouldn’t have expected it after a summer that saw them make only one significant signing (midfielder Andre Zambo Anguissa on loan from Fulham), while replacing a popular manager (Rino Gattuso) with one who is more of a misunderstood genius-type (Luciano Spalletti). But after coming from behind to beat a tough Fiorentina side, 2-1, Napoli have seven wins from seven games and sit atop of Serie A.
Spalletti deserves praise for how quickly he’s connected with his players, but also for putting so much trust in them. Victor Osimhen, fit again after missing nearly half the campaign last season, obviously grabs the headlines, but players like Lorenzo Insigne (despite his contractual dispute), Fabian Ruiz and even Kalidou Koulibaly look positively regenerated by Spalletti.
Yes, coaching does matter, and the lesson here is evident. Too often, when a new manager comes in, debate focuses on whether the club will “back him” and what new players he’ll sign. First and foremost, the criteria ought to be whether he can do a better job than his predecessor with the guys who are already there.
Late goals and squad players deliver hard-fought win — and first place — for Chelsea
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Steve Nicol explains Thomas Tuchel’s surprising decision that proved a masterstroke in Chelsea’s win.
I’m not sure what it says about Chelsea that they really haven’t had a convincing 90-minute performance since August, and yet they now sit atop the Premier League. On Saturday, against Southampton — a team that lost Ryan Bertrand, Danny Ings and Jannik Vestergaard over the summer — they put together a 3-1 victory, facilitated by two late goals and a lineup that suggests Thomas Tuchel is ready to use more of his squad in an effort to jolt the European champions into life.
– Olley: Werner, Chelsea’s fringe stars find redemption
Trevoh Chalobah, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Ben Chilwell and Callum Hudson-Odoi all started (and Ross Barkley came on as a substitute), and maybe it’s what they needed after back-to-back defeats against City and Juventus in the Champions League. Of the above quartet, Chalobah may end up getting the most playing time, Chilwell may be the most expensive and Hudson-Odoi may have the biggest long-term upside, but it’s Loftus-Cheek who is the most intriguing.
Tall, strong and powerful, but blessed with a delicate touch, he’s the guy who never made the transition from teen prodigy to first-team regular at a Champions League-caliber club. When that happens, you often get the tag of “lazy” or “injury-prone,” but he looked fit on Saturday and, crucially, he has a very different skill set to Chelsea’s other midfielders. Whether it’s offering an alternative to Mateo Kovacic or N’Golo Kante or, possibly operating further up the pitch, Loftus-Cheek may well end up having the biggest long-term impact out of Saturday’s quartet.
Locatelli powers Juventus to fourth win in a row
Right now, Juventus are about two things: results and individual growth. The latter is important because in the absence of Paulo Dybala and Alvaro Morata, it’s critical that the kids they put their faith (and resources) in show they can grow in the face of adversity. Federico Chiesa and Manuel Locatelli (who scored the late winner against Torino) are doing just that. The others will need to catch up.
As for results, they’ve always been Allegri’s (and Juve’s) bread-and-butter, and the 1-0 win over Torino makes it four wins in a row. It also ended the horrific run of 20 games without keeping a clean sheet.
It was far from a sparkling performance — more the old-style defend-and-counter against Ivan Juric’s aggressive Torino — but it does alleviate the pressure and offers time and room to grow, which is just what Allegri needs in the post-Ronaldo Era.
Son shows that rumors of Spurs’ demise are vastly exaggerated
It was all set up for the wheels to come off. A week after humiliation in the North London Derby, there were protests against owner Joe Lewis and chairman Daniel Levy. Aston Villa were in town, fresh off wins over Everton and Manchester United and a solid performance away to Chelsea. Oh, and the international break was around the corner — that time when clubs like to change (or threaten to change) their managers.
Yet Spurs showed plenty of bite and plenty of fight in their 2-1 victory. Heung-Min Son was in fine form, showing he can be near unplayable when in full flight. But many of the players who, supposedly, had lost faith in Nuno Espirito Santo, from Tanguy Ndombele to Cristian Romero, turned up on the day. Nuno may or may not be the right guy to lead this team, but on Sunday’s evidence, the players are still on board.
The Washington Capitals and Vegas Golden Knights are at the same crossroads, facing 2-1 deficits ahead of road playoff games Monday.
First up on the schedule is Capitals-Carolina Hurricanes (7 p.m. ET, TNT), followed by Golden Knights-Edmonton Oilers (9:30 p.m. ET, TNT).
Read on for game previews with statistical insights from ESPN Research, a recap of what went down in Sunday’s games and the Three Stars of Sunday from Arda Öcal.
Matchup notes
Washington Capitals at Carolina Hurricanes
Game 4 | 7 p.m. ET | TNT
With a 2-1 series lead, the Canes are now -650 favorites to win this series, while the Capitals are +425. Carolina has also jumped to second in the Stanley Cup futures table, at +350, while the Capitals are now +2500.
This is the second straight series in which the Canes led 2-1 (they beat the Devils in five games in Round 1). Carolina/Hartford is 9-4 all time in best-of-seven series when leading 2-1.
Game 3 was the Canes’ first playoff shutout win since Game 2 of the 2022 second round against the Rangers. It was the Caps’ first shutout loss since Game 5 of the 2020 first round against the Islanders.
Frederik Andersen‘s shutout was the fourth of his playoff career, but his first postseason clean sheet as a Hurricane. He joins Cam Talbot as the only active goalies with a playoff shutout for three different franchises.
Andrei Svechnikov now has six goals this postseason, which is the 17th instance of a Hurricanes/Whalers player scoring six or more goals in a single postseason.
The four goals allowed by Logan Thompson in Game 3 were more than his combined goals against in Games 1 and 2, and the most since Game 3 of the first round against Montreal (five).
Vegas Golden Knights at Edmonton Oilers
Game 4 | 9:30 p.m. ET | TNT
The Oilers’ and Knights’ series odds contracted after Vegas’ Game 3 win. Edmonton is now -250 to win, whereas Vegas is +200 to do so. The Oilers have the third-shortest Cup futures odds at +360, while the Knights are third longest at +1000.
Vegas’ Reilly Smith was credited with the winning goal in Game 3 with 0.4 seconds left on the clock after the puck angled in off Leon Draisaitl‘s stick. It goes in the record books as being scored with one second left in the third period — tied for the latest go-ahead goal in regulation in Stanley Cup playoff history with Colorado’s Nazem Kadri in 2020 and Carolina’s Jussi Jokinen in 2009.
Jack Eichel enters Game 4 riding an active six-game assist streak, which is tied for the Golden Knights’ postseason record. Mark Stone (2023) and Smith (2018) also accomplished the feat.
Connor McDavid now has 40 career playoff goals; he’s the seventh Oilers player to reach that benchmark.
Edmonton’s Corey Perry scored two goals in the first period of Game 3, becoming the third-oldest player in Stanley Cup playoff history with a multigoal period; at 39 years, 359 days old, he is behind Nicklas Lidstrom (41) and Teemu Selanne (40) at the time they had a multigoal period in a playoff game.
Öcal’s Three Stars from Sunday
The reigning Stanley Cup champions played their best game of the postseason. They limited the Maple Leafs to 22 shots on goal, owned the neutral zone, and peppered Toronto’s Joseph Woll with 37 shots en route to a 2-0 win. (Small shoutout to Woll, who played great — this game could’ve easily been 8-0.)
With a goal and two assists in Game 3, Rantanen became the first player in Stanley Cup playoffs history with five three-point games through a team’s first 10 contests. His first of those games was in Game 5 of the first round.
Bobrovsky didn’t have the busiest night of his playoff career, but he stopped all 22 shots on goal, his fifth career postseason clean sheet.
Sunday’s recaps
Dallas Stars 5, Winnipeg Jets 2
DAL leads 2-1 | Game 4 Tuesday
The Stars returned home having earned home-ice advantage in the series with a split of the first two games in Winnipeg, and from the start of this one, they looked like they did not want to give it back. Dallas’ Roope Hintz scored 2:27 in on a power play, and while Kyle Connor answered midway through the first, Thomas Harley responded thereafter, giving Dallas a 2-1 edge after the first. Nino Niederreiter scored his fourth goal of the playoffs to knot the game at two, but then the third period was all Stars. Alexander Petrovic and Mikko Rantanen scored within 50 seconds of each other, and Wyatt Johnston put the exclamation point on the contest with a goal at 14:06. Full recap.
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Tempers flare late after Max Domi’s big hit on Aleksander Barkov
Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov is shaken up after taking a hit from Max Domi late in the game.
Florida Panthers 2, Toronto Maple Leafs 0
Series tied 2-2 | Game 5 Wednesday
It’s down to a best-of-three for the Atlantic Division crown. Carter Verhaeghe kicked off the scoring for the Panthers at 15:45 of the first, and the 1-0 score would persist until 12:09 of the third, when Sam Bennett added his fifth of the postseason to make it 2-0. That was more than enough for Sergei Bobrovsky, who saved all 23 shots the Maple Leafs sent on goal. Joseph Woll was no slouch in the Leafs’ cage, either, saving 35 of 37. Tempers flared late in the game after Toronto’s Max Domi boarded Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov and a small melee ensued. Will that carry over into Game 5? Full recap.
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Wyatt Johnston pokes in Stars’ 3rd goal of 3rd period
Wyatt Johnston taps in a goal for the Stars to pad their lead in the third period vs. the Jets.
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Ryan S. Clark
LAS VEGAS — Jack Eichel is everything everywhere all at once for the Vegas Golden Knights.
You’re going to see Eichel start games. You’re going to see him score goals. You’re going to see his work lead to goals for his teammates. You’re going to see him score on the power play. Chances are — and not as in Chance, the Golden Knights’ mascot — you already knew that.
But what you might not realize? You’re also going to see him winning defensive zone faceoffs while playing a big role on the penalty kill. You’re going to see him among the special group that Golden Knights coach Bruce Cassidy trusts to either get the lead or defend the lead in the final two minutes.
Eichel’s status as a top-line center made him the centerpiece of possibly the biggest trade in the history of a franchise that has embodied the winning-at-all-costs philosophy. But Eichel’s focus was on something more: becoming a complete center who can be sent out on the ice in any situation.
Getting there involved earning Cassidy’s trust — which meant arriving at a certain realization about his game.
“When I got here, we had Chandler Stephenson, who is a really good-way center. You have William Karlsson, who is a really good two-way center,” Eichel said. “I looked around and said, ‘If I want to get the ice time and be trusted in these situations, I have to earn the trust of the coach and become more detailed and responsible defensively.'”
For all the different moves that Golden Knights general manager Kelly McCrimmon has made to tweak his roster, there are constants. One of them is having a stack of two-way centers on all four lines, to the point that one of them might be moved to the wing because the Golden Knights have that much depth.
Not that Eichel couldn’t be used in defensive situations earlier in his career. It’s just that the No. 2 pick of the 2015 NHL draft was always known more for what he did in the offensive zone, going back to his time at Boston University, where he won the Hobey Baker Award in his lone season, and in six seasons with the Buffalo Sabres.
“I [penalty] killed a little bit when I was in Buffalo, and sometimes when you have a team that’s not winning, you can be honed as a poor defensive forward or a defensive liability,” Eichel said. “I also think just part of it is maturity. It’s understanding what it takes to win, and coming here and having the opportunity to play in this system with this organization, and then allowing me to grow my game, and then having the opportunity to do that.”
THERE WERE A NUMBER of terms that were associated with Eichel when he was a draft prospect in 2015: Future captain. Future All-Star. Future franchise savior.
Being the strongest penalty killer, however, wasn’t one of them.
Eichel acknowledges he was on the penalty kill with the Sabres. It was enough to make him a contributor, but he never was the center anchoring a short-handed unit. The most short-handed minutes he received in a single season was 53:13 in his third season in Buffalo, according to Natural Stat Trick.
“It’s about the details, but I think a lot of young players when they come into the league are a bit raw,” Eichel explained. “They’re still used to having the puck on their stick for so much time during the game and they rely on their offense. You have to find out ways to round your game off and become a more complete player.”
Getting traded to Vegas in November 2021 was a significant shift. It took Eichel from a franchise that struggled to win — despite finding lots of talented players — to an organization for which “failure” was finishing that 2021-22 season with 94 points and missing the postseason by a single point — after reaching the playoffs in four consecutive campaigns.
That playoff miss prompted the Golden Knights to move on from coach Peter DeBoer and hire Cassidy, who had just been let go by the Boston Bruins. In Cassidy, the Golden Knights got an experienced coach whose defensive philosophies were at the core of why the Bruins reached the playoffs in six straight seasons.
“It did take time,” Karlsson said about learning Cassidy’s system. “We weren’t used to it. But once we learn it, you react with your instincts. You don’t have to think about it anymore because it’s a really good system. He usually has the center in a really good position, but also a really good position to transition into the offensive zone. But there are a lot of defensive details.”
Eichel made an impact in his first full season with Vegas in 2022-23. He led the Golden Knights with 66 points, and his 27 goals were second on the team. Eichel also led the club with 223 shots on goal, while scoring 14 power-play points.
The way McCrimmon constructed the Golden Knights meant that for Eichel to attain more ice time in those crucial situations, he needed to find room in a crowded landscape. The Knights had Karlsson and Stephenson. And they also had Ivan Barbashev, Brett Howden, Nicolas Roy, Reilly Smith and Mark Stone as part of the forward core. All of them logged more short-handed minutes than Eichel when they won the Stanley Cup in 2023.
Still, Eichel would be second on the team in 5-on-5 minutes during the playoffs behind Jonathan Marchessault, while finishing with six goals and 26 points in 22 games.
How did Eichel go about letting Cassidy know that he could be trusted in those situations? It wasn’t through anything he said. It was about using every practice and every game to prove he was ready to handle those demands.
“If I’m put in a situation and I don’t produce a result that is positive for the group? Then, I’m not going to have opportunities,” Eichel said. “It’s about gaining trust through good play, working with the coaches on the structure, what they are looking for and then being able to go out and execute it. I think that’s been a big, big thing.”
Even if he wasn’t heavily used on the penalty kill with the Sabres, Eichel was still playing a lot. He averaged more than 19 minutes per game in every season in Buffalo, and had four straight seasons of more than 20 minutes per contest.
In his first season with Cassidy in 2022-23, Eichel averaged a career-low 18:46 of ice time per game in the regular season, and logged 18:59 per game in the playoffs en route to the Cup.
The investment Eichel made in becoming a more responsible player paved the way for his increased minutes in the seasons that followed. There was also an opportunity for someone to take those short-handed minutes, because Smith was traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins following the Cup win in 2023.
Eichel would finish 2023-24 with a career-high 20:31 in ice time per game in 2023-24, and 123:48 in short-handed ice time, which was second among all Vegas centers behind Karlsson. He was also second in total power-play ice time, and seventh in total 5-on-5 ice time on the team — mainly due to missing 19 games.
“We’ve always had good centers. I think we definitely took a crazy step forward when we added Jack,” said Stone, a two-time Selke Trophy finalist as the game’s best two-way forward. “You go from having three guys to four guys, maybe five guys, even. Last year, he kind of took over and this year he took over for Stephenson.”
LOSING MARCHESSAULT AND STEPHENSON to free agency — in an offseason in which they saw six players from their 2023 Stanley Cup-winning team depart — meant the Golden Knights needed to find solutions to make up for those departures.
Eichel provided the Golden Knights with the best season of his career. His 66 assists and 94 points were both career highs. Some point out that Eichel could have had his first 100-point campaign if not for missing five games.
Then there’s his usage. Eichel led all Golden Knights forwards in average ice time (a career high of 20:32 per game), 5-on-5 ice time and power-play minutes. As for short-handed minutes? Eichel led all forwards in that too, by a margin of 35 minutes more than Howden. He was second in defensive zone faceoffs taken.
There was also an underlying theme of limiting mistakes. Vegas finished the regular season with the second-fewest penalty minutes in the NHL. And yes, Eichel was at the heart of that too, as he had only eight penalty minutes.
“It helps when you have the puck a lot,” Stone said. “He’s good in the D-zone, but he has the puck on his stick more than he doesn’t. He plays the D-zone quick, but when you’re that good of a player, the other team is thinking about not making mistakes.”
Karlsson explained how Cassidy’s system can be physically demanding for anyone playing down the middle. He said there are the natural expectations that come with playing center in today’s NHL. But one of the reasons why the Golden Knights place such an emphasis on conditioning and strength training is so their centers are prepared to play those longer shifts in the event they can’t get off the ice.
Stone added that Cassidy’s structure means centers are doing “a lot of skating,” while the wingers are expected to deny the other team from getting shots from the point and being active in the top of the ice.
“He’s been handling it well this year,” Karlsson said. “He’s in Year 3 now of Butch and his assistants. It’s kind of natural to him now and he’s good. He’s good at picking up things like stripping a guy off the top as he’s a big, strong guy. He reads the game well, so he’s really turning into a 200-foot player.”
During Cassidy’s time with the Bruins, he worked with venerable two-way centers such as six-time Selke Trophy winner Patrice Bergeron and stalwart second-line pivot David Krejci. In discussing those two, Cassidy admitted that they “probably taught me more than I taught them.”
But when it came to his conversations with Eichel, Cassidy said that he talked about what he saw from Bergeron and Krejci — the value they saw and provided in efficient operations in the defensive zone.
Cassidy said he and his staff started seeing that investment in Eichel pay off during their championship season. He’s since grown in those responsibilities as a two-way player who can now be used in every situation.
“That’s on the player,” Cassidy said. “They’ve got to decide if that’s what they want to do because it’s not easy to check. It’s a mindset a lot of nights, and we’ve got to be going to work and he’s done it. He’s getting credit for it, and he should.”
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Buster Olney
Teams are traditionally split into two camps leading up to the Major League Baseball trade deadline — those acquiring talent and those trading it away. But the addition of a third wild-card team for each league in 2022, which created a 12-team playoff field, has helped foster a third category: opportunists.
These clubs are on the fringe of contention, aiming to take advantage of a thin trade market by putting high asking prices on some of their players, hoping a desperate contender buys in — for maximum value.
Adders. Dealers. Opportunists.
This is just one of a number of developing conditions that are helping to form the 2025 trade market. Let’s dig into all the X factors that will rule this year’s July 31 deadline based on what executives around the league are saying.
1. There could be more opportunists this year.
The Milwaukee Brewers are hovering around .500 in an absolutely stacked National League, and even though they could be within range of the division lead in July, it would be with diminished hope if the Chicago Cubs continue to build on their strong start. Additionally, it might be unlikely that in an NL packed with playoff-caliber teams — the New York Mets, Philadelphia Phillies and Atlanta Braves in the East, and the Los Angeles Dodgers, San Diego Padres, San Francisco Giants and Arizona Diamondbacks in the West — that Milwaukee could even win a wild-card spot. The Brewers have better chances of taking the NL Central (13%) than earning a wild-card berth (5.3%), according to Fangraphs.
This could lead to the Brewers doing what the Tampa Bay Rays did at the trade deadline last year — capitalize on there being so few dealers on the market. Freddy Peralta has been one of the league’s best starters this year, and he’s earning a very affordable $8 million this year, with Milwaukee holding an $8 million option for next season. If the Orioles landed him, he would instantly become their ace. For the Yankees, he could be a bedrock behind Max Fried and Carlos Rodon. If Peralta stays healthy, his value will never be higher than it is now.
The Rays were the opportunists of last summer, flipping Randy Arozarena to the Seattle Mariners with two-and-a-half years of team control remaining and trading Isaac Paredes to the Cubs despite trailing by just 1½ games for the third wild card on the last Sunday of July. Tampa Bay didn’t go into full sell mode; rather, it saw a stark trade market — “There are no good players available,” one executive said in the middle of last July — and capitalized.
It’s possible — maybe even likely — that the Brewers won’t choose this path. Owner Mark Attanasio is seen by his peers as competitive, someone who places a high value on making the playoffs. Some rival execs don’t believe Milwaukee would consider trading Peralta if the team is still within range of the Cubs, who are managed by former Milwaukee manager Craig Counsell.
But for some of the teams stuck amid the pack of contenders, it’s something worth considering:
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St. Louis Cardinals: They’re on a winning streak, and they’ve communicated to other teams that even if they aren’t a front-runner, they might keep their tradable players in what is the last season of John Mozeliak’s tenure as head of baseball operations.
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Minnesota Twins: They could dangle Byron Buxton, their dynamic and oft-injured center fielder, into the trade conversations. Buxton is healthy and playing well, and he’s under contract for the next three seasons at $15.1 million per year.
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Toronto Blue Jays: Now that they’ve signed Vladimir Guerrero Jr. to anchor their team for a long time, they could look at the best ways to shape a future around him, and weigh offers for players such as Chris Bassitt.
One exec working for a contender doesn’t believe the list of opportunists will be long.
“Usually, what they ask for is unrealistic,” he said. “They’ll ask for your four best prospects and you say no and they move on and keep the player.”
2. The general mediocrity of the American League could greatly reduce its number of dealers.
The Chicago White Sox are rebuilding and open for business, but the front office of any other team in the AL could convince itself that a playoff bid is possible — because it just seems like there are few, if any, great teams.
The Baltimore Orioles might be the best working example of this phenomenon. The start of the season has been disastrous for Baltimore, which has a rotation that has been pummeled regularly. But it’s hard to imagine the Orioles surrendering early, given their success of the past two seasons and their roster of young position players. So, they could be a club that is unwilling to part ways with talent at the deadline, even if they have a losing record.
3. The teams already viewed as potential subtractors might not have the talent contenders want.
Clubs such as the Colorado Rockies, Miami Marlins and White Sox don’t have much to offer in the eyes of rival evaluators. Other teams have monitored Marlins righty Sandy Alcantara and White Sox outfielder Luis Robert Jr., but both are struggling early in the season. Alcantara has an 8.42 ERA in seven starts since his return from elbow surgery, while Robert’s early slash line is .186/.293/.326, which doesn’t boost other teams’ interest — nor the leverage of the White Sox.
4. It appears the market for outfielders will be very thin.
Typically, the upcoming free agent class serves as a tool to define most of the players who could be traded before that year’s deadline — and quite simply, in the outfield, the pickings beyond Kyle Tucker are few.
The would-be opportunists could take advantage of a really soft outfield market and get value if they’re willing to dangle outfielders under team control beyond this season. For example, the Twins could set a solid price for Buxton and the Jays would probably draw a lot of interest for Daulton Varsho, an elite defender who won’t be eligible for free agency until after the 2026 season.
5. Very few good starting pitchers are expected to be available.
If the Cardinals decide to deal players, right-hander Erick Fedde, who has a 3.86 ERA this season, could draw some interest. Fellow right-handed starter Sonny Gray is a three-time All-Star, but his contract is very backloaded — he’s owed $35 million in 2026 — and the last time he was traded to a contender midseason (from the Athletics to New York Yankees in 2017), it did not go well.
6. A Nolan Arenado trade could still be possible.
Conditions are emerging to foster this possibility, if Arenado waives his no-trade clause and if the Cardinals are willing to deal him. Normally, it’s not easy to move a position player with money attached at midseason, but contenders could be interested in acquiring the eight-time All-Star third baseman. The Cubs haven’t found a solution at third base, and the Yankees will soon try DJ LeMahieu in their ongoing attempt to fill the position. The Los Angeles Dodgers waited last season for Max Muncy to turn around a slow start, and he eventually did; this year, they’re waiting again.
Arenado, who killed a possible trade to the Houston Astros last winter, is owed about $24 million for the rest of this year, $27 million in 2026 ($5 million paid by the Rockies) and $15 million in 2027.
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