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Every December, we celebrate the best sound bites in college football and a collection of quotes, tweets and memories that exemplify the arc of the season.

Except for the ones by Mike Leach. They always seemed to be about anything but football. Leach, who died last week at 61, was the most quotable coach in the country and will be remembered as the most unpredictable, yet most anticipated, interview in the history of the sport.

So, like Leach, we won’t waste any time getting to the good stuff. Presenting the 2022 Mike Leach Memorial Quotes of the Year.

Leach’s legacy

SEC Network’s Alyssa Lang got some personal advice from The Pirate on her upcoming wedding. “We’ll keep a close eye on it,” he said. “But whatever you and Trevor decide, I would keep it on the down-low, which you failed to do that.” Listen to the rest of his advice here.

After Leach’s death, colleagues and archrivals alike reacted emotionally to the loss. New Mississippi State coach Zach Arnett, Leach’s defensive coordinator who has been named as his replacement, wanted to play the bowl game in Leach’s honor.

“I’m grateful to be part of his final win, hug him and watch him walk off like the winner that he is.”
— Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin, whose Rebels lost to Leach and Mississippi State in the Egg Bowl, Leach’s final game, on his sadness over his friend Leach’s death.

“Coach Arnett has made it clear that we’re going to finish what we started and honor Coach Leach. It’s only fitting that we play this game and honor Coach Leach in a stadium that has a pirate ship.”
— Mississippi State interim athletic director Bracky Brett, saying the Bulldogs would play the bowl game despite Leach’s death.

Not to be overshadowed, this Nick Saban reference is brought to you to remind everyone that Leach changed football forever.

Meanwhile, Spurrier’s still got it

“I almost feel sorry for Tennessee. They’re not going to win the division, they’re not going to win the SEC, they’re not going to get in that Final Four. They’re just going to have a little bit better than average year now. Someone told me, ‘Tennessee is probably headed for the Citrus Bowl now.’ I guess that’s kind of a mean thing to say.”
— Noted Vols antagonist Steve Spurrier, who famously said “you can’t spell ‘Citrus’ without U-T” 25 years ago this year to the Charleston Post & Courier after South Carolina’s 63-38 upset of No. 5 Tennessee.

Boy, this seems like forever ago

Jimbo Fisher and Nick Saban dominated headlines in the spring after a comment Saban made followed by a news conference where a fiery Fisher went ballistic.

“We were second in recruiting last year, A&M was first. A&M bought every player on their team. Made a deal for name, image and likeness. We didn’t buy one player. But I don’t know if we will be able to sustain that in the future because more and more people are doing it.”
— Saban, on May 18, speaking to a group of business leaders in Birmingham about how college football recruiting had changed.

“Some people think they’re God. Go dig into how God did his deal. You may find out … a lot of things you don’t want to know. We build him up to be the czar of football. Go dig into his past, or anybody’s that’s ever coached with him. You can find out anything you want to find out, what he does and how he does it. It’s despicable.”
— Fisher ripped Saban, calling him a narcissist, saying “we’re done” and that Saban had called him but he didn’t answer the phone.

“Maybe I can get better from some of these things … I don’t feel any differently. I really don’t because I don’t take things personally. You know, some people take things personally — when they win and when they lose. I mean, when you play pickup basketball, some people take things personally and some people don’t.”
— Saban, on Aug. 25 on how he viewed the spat.

The day a message board poster became a legend

“This $30 million thing is a joke. This idea there’s some fund out there and it was written on BroBible by a guy named Sliced Bread and now all of a sudden the country believes it?”
— Fisher, addressing a rumor that started on message boards and was later aggregated across websites saying the Aggies had a substantial NIL fund to sign their top-rated recruiting class.

Kiffin knows how to keep it going

“We got outbid. Kind of a common theme with that program.”
— Kiffin, on losing defensive coordinator D.J. Durkin to Texas A&M.

After Kiffin and the Rebels beat the Aggies on Oct. 29, piling up 390 yards rushing “against a bunch of five-stars,” as Kiffin kept repeating, he was quick with the jokes when asked if he had a Halloween costume in mind that weekend. Fisher had alluded to Kiffin when talking about “clown acts” in the SEC after Kiffin asked if the Aggies incurred a luxury tax for how much they paid for their signing class.

The Horned Frogs are cooking

“Not really. If I can’t do that, I need to go work for Ricky Chicken at Chicken Express.”
— TCU coach Sonny Dykes, referencing the nickname of Ricky Stuart, owner of a Texas fast food chain, when asked if the fans’ hostility bothered him in his return to play against former school SMU, the Horned Frogs’ Iron Skillet rivals.

Old rivalries die hard, Vol. 1

“They ran for 194 yards against Texas A&M, the number whatever team in the country. They ran for 68 against us. They averaged 1.6 yards per carry — they gave us $1.5 million, but they got 1.6 yards per carry … You know, it just … I don’t know where that came from.”
— Middle Tennessee State coach Rick Stockstill, a Florida State grad, in a radio interview with 104.5 The Zone in Nashville after the Blue Raiders beat Miami 45-31.

Giving ’em the bird

“A chicken is a chicken but a fighting gamecock is something different. This is dumbing down the Gamecocks. Whenever a new coach goes to a school that’s been struggling, you always hear a statement similar to, ‘You’ve got to change the culture.’ I don’t know what ‘culture’ in our day and age means, but if it means making a gamecock look like a chicken, or not hurting him because it might make the chicken feel good, it’s not preserving what we’ve built. This is dumbing down our culture.”
— Ron Albertelli, former owner of South Carolina mascot Big Spur, who is upset that the new mascot handlers, Beth and Van Clark, do not trim the comb, the little red thing on the top of roosters’ heads.

Prime grade beef

“He ain’t SWAC. I’m SWAC, he ain’t SWAC. He’s in the conference, doing a great job, can’t knock that, got a great team, his son should be up for the Heisman Trophy, I love Shedeur, great player, I love what he’s doing for the conference. … But you’re not going to come here and disrespect me and my team and my school and then want a bro hug. Shake my hand and get the hell off.”
— Alabama State coach Eddie Robinson Jr., after refusing a postgame hug with former Jackson State coach Deion Sanders, taking issue with Sanders saying that they were picked as Alabama State’s homecoming opponent because of the crowds and attention that follow Sanders.

“I was a darn good salesman leading up to the week. Did we sell the game out? Did we sell the game out, yes or no? Had they ever been sold out here? So I thought I did my job. I thought I should be applauded, really.”
— Sanders, in response to Robinson’s comments.

Cutting to the chase

Not cutting to the chase

“I’m not going to comment on whether it’s a felony or not, or whether it should’ve been charged as a felony or not, but I think if you do your homework you’re going to realize you can’t compare this to the low-hanging fruit that’s out there. I’d encourage you not to pander to the Twittersphere and really, the haters that like to drink their haterade and eat their hater tots.”
— Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh on Dec. 4 on his decision to play Mazi Smith all season despite an arrest in October on felony concealed weapons charges. Smith pleaded guilty on a misdemeanor charge Dec. 8 and his sentencing will be announced Jan. 12.

They’d still say it’s worth it

“When you first see all the cigars you’re like, what is all that? They got dropped, but then they got shredded. So we had all this tobacco laying everywhere. But between shoes and cigar tubes … we couldn’t get over the amount of clothes. OK, what’d you do, walk out of here nekkid?”
— Tennessee director of sports surface management Darren Seybold, on the trash left behind from fans storming the field after the Vols beat Alabama

Like Dua Lipa said: ‘Don’t show up, don’t come out’

“I tell people all the time, the audacity for other people to even step on the field is disrespectful to me. … People ask me what motivates me, and I say, ‘The audacity for the fans to show up and for the team to come step on the field and play with us.'”
— Alabama outside linebacker Will Anderson Jr., who might just drink haterade and eat hater tots.

Old rivalries die hard, Vol. 2

“I was a little scared of Boz. Boz scared me a little bit. Boz was on a different type of artificial nutrition than I was. Period.”
— Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy, on his memories of his first Bedlam rivalry game in 1986 and playing against Oklahoma legend Brian Bosworth, who had written Gundy’s name on his shoes.

Gundy also had plenty to say at Big 12 media days in the spring, particularly on realignment.

“Well, we all know, conference realignment, it’s kind of almost the old Karen Carpenter ‘We’ve Only Just Begun’ concept. I think it’s just getting started, in my opinion … I like the Carpenters. I heard that song the other day, and the first thing I thought about was conference realignment. I think that she cut that record on the first take. That was a one-take deal.”
— The Oklahoma State coach on a 1970 pop hit and Carpenter’s studio skills.

“It’s interesting. We go to conference meetings, and OU and Texas are in there. They’re still in the conference. But I’m guessing when they leave, they’re scratching down things that can help them when they’re in the SEC. So it is an unusual situation. I think there’s a business side of it that nowadays people say, ‘It is what it is.’ Which, 10 years ago, they might not even let them in meetings. The new commissioner, I mean, honestly, if I was him, I wouldn’t let OU and Texas in any meetings.”
— Gundy on Texas and Oklahoma still being in the Big 12 until (allegedly) 2025 despite plans to move to the SEC, and the advice he has for new Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark

Brian Kelly, man of the world

“Understand now, I have a Boston, Midwestern and Louisiana accent now. So it’s three dialects into one. It’s no longer family — I’ve got all kinds of stuff to throw at you.”
— LSU coach Brian Kelly, at SEC media days, after being mocked for the elongated way he said “fam-uh-lee” in a makeshift Southern accent when he first spoke to LSU fans last December at a basketball game.

That’s good? Or bad?

“There’s two options in life in any situation. You can surrender, and if you surrender, then I think the results are pretty much guaranteed. Or you can dig in, you can continue to fight and you can try to improve and do things better. I will always choose option A. … I wouldn’t be able to go home and look my children in the eye if I wasn’t an option B person. I think I said option A. I started with option surrender, right? That’s not me. Let me be crystal clear about that. That’s number one.”
— Iowa offensive coordinator Brian Ferentz, on Oct. 12, as Iowa’s offense ranked 131st of 131 teams nationally in total offense.

Cade McNamara, who announced he was transferring from Michigan to Iowa earlier this month, might find some takers.

Michigan’s tunnel vision

“I didn’t get a sandwich thrown at me, but R.J. [Moten] came up to me and said I just got hit with a PB&J in the face. So I guess they were.”
— Michigan offensive lineman Trevor Keegan, who said teammates said food was thrown at them after the Penn State game.

Some B1G twists and turns

“You go to USC and UCLA games, and quite honestly, it’s just kind of boring. Without all the people. They kind of just are there on vacation. You go to the other schools out of state and their fans are kind of like fanatics.”
— Ohio State quarterback C.J. Stroud, on Dec. 29, 2021 (technically, it’s within the last year, since this happened after our list last year).

Then USC and UCLA stunned the college football world in July by announcing they were splitting from the Pac-12.

“We wanted to operate in a position of strength, and that was the Big Ten.”
— UCLA athletic director Martin Jarmond, to ESPN on why his school made the move.

“You’re going to wake up watching Big Ten football and go to bed watching Big Ten football. So that’s exciting for our players, exciting for our fans. Will there be a travel component to it? There is, but we’re going to Dublin in the opener, so it won’t be that big of a deal.”
— Northwestern coach Pat Fitzgerald

“I got asked, ‘How are you going to feel when you play your first conference game at SC?’ Just hope I’m f—ing still there.”
— Wisconsin coach Paul Chryst, at Big Ten media days July 27. Chryst was fired Oct. 2.

Saban’s dad jokes

“Before you ask, you oughta see the other guy. And you know I took one of the hardest hits of the entire game, and unlike some of our players who had to go to the medical tent … like I always say, they don’t make ’em like they used to.”
— Saban on a cut he suffered when he was hit in the face by a player’s shoulder pad during the Iron Bowl win over Auburn.

Drink it in, Sam

“I think the first couple series are going to be really important to kind of figure out what they’re bringing to the party. Some guys bring iced tea, and some guys bring liquor. You’ve just got to figure out what they’re bringing.
— Arkansas coach Sam Pittman, before the Razorbacks’ season opener against a Cincinnati offense with two quarterbacks still competing to replace four-year starter Desmond Ridder.

“I don’t have a whole lot of friends and I don’t get invited to a whole lot of parties. So I don’t know what I’ll do. I just know who I am. And I guess they’ll find out.”
— Then Bearcats coach Luke Fickell, in response to a question about Pittman’s comment.

After Arkansas’ 31-24 win over Cincinnati, Pittman decided “an ol’ cold beer” is what he was up for after all.

The Dawgs’ dominance

“People ask the question, ‘How does it feel to be hunted?’ We will not be hunted at the University of Georgia. I can promise you that. The hunting we do will be from us going the other direction. We’re not going to sit back and be passive.”
— Georgia coach Kirby Smart, at SEC media days, on life after winning a national championship.

“I told our kids I don’t want one kid to walk out of our program without a championship ring, and that was about to happen. They said enough was enough, and they got them one tonight.”
— Smart, after Georgia’s 50-30 SEC championship game win over LSU gave him his first SEC title since 2017 and the first 13-0 record in school history.

The last word

“Mike [Leach] had a bigger impact on football, whether pro football, high school football or college football, than anybody in my generation. He just changed the way people approach the game. “
— TCU coach Sonny Dykes, a former Leach assistant at Kentucky and Texas Tech

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Braves’ Acuña homers on 1st pitch after year away

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May 24, 2025

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Braves' Acuña homers on 1st pitch after year away

  • ESPN News Services

May 23, 2025, 08:12 PM ET

ATLANTA — Ronald Acuña Jr. crushed his first pitch 467 feet for a home run in his dramatic return to the Atlanta Braves on Friday night, almost one year after he tore his left ACL.

Acuña, in his customary leadoff position in the lineup, turned on a fastball from San Diego Padres right-hander Nick Pivetta and sent the ball into the seats in left-center. Acuña hesitated briefly on his jog around the bases for a shuffle step.

The homer by Acuña had an exit velocity of 115.5 mph. It was the hardest hit ball by a Braves player this season.

Acuña added a single in his next at-bat and also enjoyed a defensive highlight, throwing out Elias Díaz at second base in the eighth following Díaz’s single.

But San Diego’s Manny Machado hit a tiebreaking homer off Raisel Iglesias in the ninth inning to overcome Acuña’s homer and beat the Braves 2-1 to end a six-game losing streak.

Acuña said after the game “I had a feeling” about hitting a homer in his return.

When asked if he meant he had a feeling about a first-pitch homer, Acuña said: “Exactly how it happened. … To me that’s just the culmination of all the work I put in.”

Infielder Orlando Arcia, a 2023 All-Star, was designated for assignment to clear a roster spot for Acuña, who started in right field.

Acuña said through interpreter Franco Garcia that he was “super excited, super happy” to make his return and added “I couldn’t sleep that much” after receiving the news of his return Thursday.

Braves manager Brian Snitker announced after Thursday night’s 8-7 loss at Washington that Acuña would make his season debut Friday night.

Snitker said Friday it felt good to make out his first lineup of 2025 that included Acuña.

“He’s one of those players that you better not go get a beer or whatever because you might miss something really cool, you know?” Snitker said. “I mean, he’s that type of force, I think, in the game. I think he’s going to energize everybody. Going to energize the fans. Going to energize his teammates.”

Acuña, the 2023 NL MVP, hurt his left knee May 26, 2024, and had surgery on June 6. The 27-year-old played six games in the minors on a rehab assignment, going 6-for-15 with two home runs.

Acuña played in only 49 games last season, batting .250 with four homers, 15 RBIs, 16 stolen bases and a .716 OPS.

This is Acuña’s second comeback from a major knee injury. He tore his right ACL on July 10, 2021, and returned the following April. When asked Friday what is different about this rehabilitation process, he said, “Patience. The patience, for sure. … I just think I’m in a much better place.”

Atlanta is 24-26 after an 0-7 start.

“It’s huge,” third baseman Austin Riley said. “The talent is there. The energy he brings, having Ronald up there at the top of the lineup. … He can change a game at any point.”

Acuña was a unanimous NL MVP in 2023 when he hit .336 with 41 home runs, 106 RBIs and a league-leading 1.012 OPS. Acuña also stole 73 bases that year to become the only player with 40 homers and 70 steals in one season.

Arcia, 30, was a 2023 NL All-Star when he hit .264 with 17 homers and 65 RBIs. Arcia lost his starting job due to an inability to compensate at the plate while suffering a defensive decline. He hit only .194 in 31 at-bats this season.

Snitker said he hopes Arcia will accept a minor league assignment if he does not land another job in the majors.

“I think we all know that it’s a business,” Acuña said of Arcia getting cut. “I’m happy to be back but I’m sorry that’s the move.”

Nick Allen has taken over as the starting shortstop. Snitker said Luke Williams is the backup shortstop and Eli White, a part-time starter in the outfield, will see more time in the infield.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Skenes on trade chatter: ‘Anybody can play GM’

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6 hours ago

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May 24, 2025

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Skenes on trade chatter: 'Anybody can play GM'

  • ESPN News Services

May 24, 2025, 12:24 AM ET

PITTSBURGH — Paul Skenes didn’t hear Pittsburgh Pirates general manager Ben Cherington say that trading the reigning National League Rookie of the Year to give the last-place club an influx of much-needed position player talent is “not at all part of the conversation.”

When someone relayed Cherington’s comments to him, the 22-year-old ace laughed.

“It doesn’t affect anything,” Skenes told The Associated Press late Friday night after the Pirates rallied for a 6-5, 10-inning win over Milwaukee. “Anybody can play GM.”

If Skenes, who celebrated his first anniversary in the majors two weeks ago, has learned anything during his rise to stardom over the past three years, it’s that noise is not the same as news.

“There’s no substance to just all that talk that you hear on social media and news outlets and stuff like that,” Skenes said.

It’s one of the many reasons he makes it a point to try and block out all the noise.

There could be a time when Skenes moves on, either by Pittsburgh’s choice or his own. That time, at least to Skenes, is not coming soon.

Pittsburgh is last in the major leagues in runs with 157, and has no high-profile position player prospect ready to walk into the home clubhouse at PNC Park as a big leaguer anytime soon.

“Ben’s job is to create a winning team and a winning organization,” Skenes said. “So, what it looks like to him [is up to him].”

Skenes added if the Pirates make a highly unusual move by trading one of the sport’s brightest young stars, even though he remains under team control for the rest of the decade and isn’t eligible for arbitration until 2027, he wouldn’t take it personally.

“I don’t expect it to happen,” Skenes stressed. “[But Cherington] is going to look out for what’s best for the Pirates. If he feels [trading me] is the right way to go, then he feels that’s the right way to go. But you know, I have to pitch well, that’s the bottom line.”

Skenes has been every bit the generational talent Pittsburgh hoped it was getting when it selected him with the top pick in the 2023 draft.

The 6-foot-6 right-hander was a sensation from the moment he made his big league debut last May and even as the team around him has scuffled — the Pirates tied a major league record by going 26 straight games without scoring more than four runs, a streak that ended in a loss to the Brewers on Thursday — he has not.

Five days after throwing the first complete game of his career in a 1-0 loss to Philadelphia, Skenes kept the Brewers in check over six innings, giving up one run on four hits with two walks and eight strikeouts.

When he induced Sal Frelick into a grounder to second to finish the sixth, many in the crowd of 24,646 rose to their feet to salute him as he sauntered back to the dugout. He exited with a 2-1 lead, then watched from afar as the struggling bullpen let it slip away. The Pirates, in an all-too-rare occurrence, fought back, rallying to tie it in the ninth on Oneil Cruz‘s second home run, then winning it in the 10th when Adam Frazier raced home on a wild pitch.

Afterward, music blared and Skenes — who hasn’t won in a month despite a 2.32 ERA across his five May starts — flashed a smile that was a mixture of happiness and relief.

“It’s nice to see us pull it out, which is something that we haven’t done as much to this point in the year,” he said. “Hopefully, it’s a good sign.”

The challenge of trying to help make the Pirates truly matter is something Skenes has eagerly accepted. He’s as invested in the city as he is in the team.

Asked if the outside speculation that the club should move on from him so quickly is disrespectful to the effort he has given the Pirates, the former Air Force cadet shrugged.

“I don’t feel anything good or bad toward it,” he said.

It hasn’t been the start to 2025 that anybody associated with the Pirates has wanted. Skenes believes there has been a “little bit more fight” since Don Kelly took over as manager. He believes that he’s gaining more mastery over his ever-expanding arsenal. He believes he’s developing chemistry with catcher Henry Davis.

Skenes was asked about what it has been like to work with Davis, the top overall pick in the 2021 draft.

“Just really got to keep doing what we’re doing,” Skenes said, “continue learning and let everything take care of itself, I guess.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Oilers make a statement with 3-0 win in Game 2: Grades, takeaways for both teams

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May 24, 2025

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Oilers make a statement with 3-0 win in Game 2: Grades, takeaways for both teams

  • Multiple Contributors

May 23, 2025, 11:15 PM ET

The Edmonton Oilers atoned for letting Game 1 of the Western Conference finals slip away in a dominating 3-0 Game 2 win over the Dallas Stars on Friday to even the series.

Oilers goaltender Stuart Skinner continued to be the most boom-or-bust player in the postseason. He gave up 20 goals and didn’t have a save percentage better than .833 in four losses. His three wins? All shutouts, becoming just the second Edmonton goalie in franchise history to record three in a playoff year. (The other was Curtis Joseph in 1998.)

Once again, the Oilers flexed their impressive depth. The stars combined on their power-play goal in the first period, with Ryan Nugent-Hopkins getting the tally on assists from Evan Bouchard and Leon Draisaitl. The other two non-empty-netters: Brett Kulak‘s first of the playoffs, snapping his rebound past Jake Oettinger; and Connor Brown, continuing an incredible playoff run with his fifth goal in the second period.

(Of course, the highlight of Brown’s night was avoiding a calamitous injury when Mikael Granlund‘s skate nearly clipped his face.)

How did both teams perform? What are the big questions facing each team ahead of Game 3 on Sunday afternoon in Edmonton? Here’s our breakdown of the Oilers’ Game 2 win.

As I warned after Game 1: Not every game of the Western Conference finals would have a third-period implosion by the Oilers, nor the power-play success the Stars enjoyed to rally for that win.

Edmonton continued to roll at 5-on-5, winning the special teams battle. The Stars weren’t sharp on the details. There were too many shots that didn’t get through to Stuart Skinner, and there were not enough moments that truly tested the Edmonton goalie — outside of a third-period short-handed breakaway that Wyatt Johnston couldn’t convert, extending his drought to one point in eight games.

The Stars had more giveaways through two periods (21) than they had in any game of the 2025 postseason. That’s gift-wrapping the game to Edmonton. The Oilers were going to be desperate after losing Game 1, and Dallas didn’t come close to answering that effort or execution. — Greg Wyshynski

Edmonton Oilers
Grade: A

Edmonton got the start it wanted in Game 2 — Ryan Nugent-Hopkins tallied an early power-play goal that felt like exacting revenge on that costly, penalty-filled third period the Oilers handed Dallas in Game 1. Then, Edmonton tempted fate, handing the Stars a power play — but neutralized it with an excellent kill. That was a confidence booster.

The Oilers followed that by holding Dallas at bay in the second frame, when Skinner was particularly strong as the Stars pushed for an equalizer. That success set up Edmonton to extend its lead with a pair of goals in just 1:13, off a powerful shot from Brett Kulak and a tip from Connor Brown. Edmonton exorcised a few more demons by killing the Stars’ power-play opportunities in the third period.

This was a low-shot game, with only three registered from both sides by midway through the frame, and it was clear how much effort Edmonton was exerting in trying to limit Dallas’ chances. It worked in the end. And a round of applause for Skinner, who rebounded from a brutal performance in the final 20 minutes of Game 1 to be a true difference-maker while recording his third shutout in four games. — Kristen Shilton

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Ryan Nugent-Hopkins tips in opening goal for Oilers

Ryan Nugent-Hopkins buries the goal for Edmonton to give the Oilers an early 1-0 lead.

Three Stars of Game 2

Nugent-Hopkins had a goal and an assist, and his power-play goal to open the scoring was the winner. He has multipoint outings in both games of this series, and both of the Oilers’ power-play goals through two games.

Skinner had 25 saves for his third shutout of the postseason, joining Curtis Joseph in 1998 as the only Oilers goalies with three clean sheets in a postseason.

3. Bouncing back

The Oilers flushed an abysmal third period in Game 1 to control Game 2 virtually for the entire 60 minutes, en route to a 3-0 victory to even the series heading to Edmonton for Games 3 and 4. — Arda Öcal

Players to watch in Game 3

The Stars winger shares the postseason scoring lead with McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, at 20 points, thanks to a four-game stretch in which he has generated only one point — a power-play assist in Game 1 of this series. Rantanen earned all of his Conn Smythe hype by carrying the Stars through their first-round win over the Colorado Avalanche, and then posting two, three-point games in wins over the Winnipeg Jets.

But in Game 2, he had as many shot attempts as he did giveaways (three). Neither number is good for the Stars. With Roope Hintz leaving Game 2 because of an injury, there are even more questions about their top line, which hasn’t produced an even-strength goal since Game 4 against the Jets. — Wyshynski

Fans are always watching for McDavid. But for all McDavid’s marvellous moves and powerful playmaking, he hasn’t been a goal-scoring threat for Edmonton. McDavid has just three goals (with 20 points) in these playoffs, and 11 goals in his past 38 postseason contests.

There’s no discounting McDavid’s impact on the Oilers’ game, but there’s a need to see him light the lamp, too. Right now, McDavid is sitting on just one goal since Game 3 of Edmonton’s first-round series against Los Angeles. The Oilers are matching up well against the Stars at 5-on-5 in the series. And McDavid appeared to ring the iron at least once in Game 2.

If McDavid can put more doubt in Dallas by slipping one (or more) past Jake Oettinger, it could ignite Edmonton’s game further — and nothing would get the Oilers’ home crowd fired up quite like seeing the captain go off. — Shilton

Big questions for Game 3

What’s the status of Roope Hintz?

The Stars lost their top center in the third period after a nasty slash to the top of the skate by Edmonton defenseman Darnell Nurse. Hintz crumpled to the ice, clutching his left leg and needed help leaving the playing surface just 3:40 into the final period.

Nurse received only a minor penalty after the officials reviewed it — and the Department of Player Safety will review it further.

Losing Hintz, or having him diminished, would be a huge blow to Dallas, as the veteran Finn has five goals and six assists in 14 games, also playing on the Stars’ power play and penalty kill. — Wyshynski

The Oilers should be feeling good as the series shifts to their home ice. Getting one of the club’s top defensemen back would be an enormous boost for the Oilers, too.

Ekholm has been sidelined because of an undisclosed injury since mid-April, missing all of the Oilers’ postseason run to date. But he returned to practice Thursday, and though he remains day-to-day, even Ekholm admitted he didn’t expect to be back soon.

Edmonton has leaned on Ty Emberson and Troy Stecher in Ekholm’s absence, but there’s no question he would strengthen its back end when he’s ready. The Oilers must prepare for Dallas’ response in Game 3, and having Ekholm — who averaged 22 minutes in the regular season for Edmonton, while collecting nine goals and 33 points — makes that more manageable. — Shilton

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