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The Arizona Coyotes are known for bold fashion statements, from their multicolored Kachina logo to using desert sienna as the template for their recent Reverse Retro jersey.

Their latest foray into courageous couture: a special edition “Desert Night” jersey created by Rhuigi Villaseñor, the founder and creative director of Los Angeles-based streetwear brand Rhude.

The team is releasing the jersey to the public on Wednesday and will wear it for the first time on Sunday against the Vegas Golden Knights at Mullett Arena.

“This concept of design meets sports is a growing idea, you know?” said Villaseñor, who was hired as the Coyotes’ creative strategist and global fashion designer in October.

“This will become the fire igniter to the culture. One of the things we bonded over was bringing culture into the sport. We’re all in one ecosystem, not a separate one. For me, it’s about being the team that helps make hockey a thing in street culture.”

The burgundy jersey features the word “Arizona” in sand-colored cursive writing across the chest. There’s a star located above the letter “I” on the wordmark, symbolizing both the desert nights when coyotes hunt and the Arizona state flag. There’s Kachina-style etching on the bottom of the jersey and the sleeves. Inside the collar are small geckos, a tribute to the gecko shoulder patch from the Coyotes’ original green third jersey.

The Coyotes will wear pants with a sand-colored cactus on them, along with burgundy helmets and gloves.

In an inspired twist on tradition, the team’s captain will wear a half-moon “C” patch, while the alternate captains will be identified with a patch that creates an “A” with two cacti hugging each other.

Some NHL teams have started to partner with fashion brands to create special looks for their gear. Last season, the Toronto Maple Leafs partnered with Drew House, Justin Bieber’s design label, to create and wear reversible jerseys.

“We’re seeing an influx of sports in fashion right now, and we really wanted to be at the forefront of that, pushing the boundaries,” said Alex Meruelo Jr., the Coyotes’ chief brand officer.

This isn’t the first sports crossover for Villaseñor, who is also the creative director of Swiss-based Bally. Rhude had a successful collaboration with F1 and McLaren in 2021 that “reimagines the sport and modern luxury into an innovative and progressive collection,” he said.

Villaseñor said he’s seen other brands creating hockey jerseys, so it was time for the NHL to lean into creating jerseys that could cross over to a wider audience.

Creating an NHL jersey offered some singular challenges. Functionality isn’t always at the forefront of fashion, but it needs to be when designing game-worn gear.

Villaseñor said they tried to create a hockey jersey at Rhude, something that was more of a runway look. At first, he didn’t realize all the venting needed for a game jersey, nor did he account for the extra space required for pads.

“I thought I was coming in to design shapes and create a logo. But it’s really interesting to see the complexity of a jersey and all the things that go beyond what we usually see, which is a silhouette and color,” he said.

“With anything in life, when you have a goal, you work with that goal and then add in all the ingredients. In this case, the goal was to create an iconic jersey and one that feels like it’s part of the heritage of the Coyotes. The added parts to it are the complexities.”

Another difference between designing for the runway and for the ice: distance.

“You have to take a step back and realize that when we watch a game, we’re not five inches away from the player. These are minor tweaks that we have to do. But in the end, it’s about making a dope jersey. It was exciting,” he said.

Villaseñor said that considering, and in some ways honoring, the Coyotes’ previous looks was also part of the process.

“When I looked at the heritage of the jerseys, I really looked at the cool things that were used. I wanted to use the iconic parts of the jersey,” he said.

His favorite part of the sweater is the desert topography that it evokes. “It’s the signifier. Making sure that this becomes the Arizona Coyotes uniform, but that it also becomes the uniform of the state, right?” he said.

The Coyotes will wear the “Desert Night” jersey 14 times this season at Mullett Arena. It’s their temporary home on the campus of Arizona State University as they wait for construction of a new arena in Tempe to be greenlit by voters this spring. Meruelo said adding a special edition sweater to the mix is part of an overall feeling of rebirth for the franchise.

“It’s almost like we’re an expansion team at this point with everything going on. It’s really cool being able to create what we really see the brand and what we want it to become and engage with all those fans in waiting,” he said. “We’ve made a sizable investment in this and we feel like it’s part of the future. Ideally we want to create a Coyotes universe and service our fans in every way possible.”

Villaseñor has a key role in that audience expansion. His family moved from Manila, the capital of the Philippines, to Los Angeles when he was 11 years old. He marinated in hip-hop culture and was inspired by it. He still remembers when NHL jerseys were a ubiquitous part of streetwear. He believes they can get there again.

“It was there, when you look at the 2000s and the 1990s, at music and movies and commercials and all of that,” he said. “Hockey’s still embedded in the culture. But sometimes things fall into cracks and new things come to life. But just like other sports have had resurgences and have become cool, hockey will enjoy that in an evolved way.”

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‘Incredible’ Tkachuk returns, nets 2 for Panthers

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'Incredible' Tkachuk returns, nets 2 for Panthers

TAMPA, Fla. — Matthew Tkachuk made his long-awaited return to the lineup and was back to his old self quickly on Tuesday night for the Florida Panthers, who opened this postseason the way they ended last postseason: With a win.

Playing for the first time in more than two months after dealing with a lower-body injury, Tkachuk scored two second-period goals in his return game, as the Panthers handled the rival Tampa Bay Lightning 6-2 in this Eastern Conference first-round series opener at Amalie Arena.

Those two goals were both of the power-play variety, the first putting Florida up 4-1 — the second goal for the Panthers in a 14-second span — and the next one pushing the lead to 5-1 midway through the second period.

It was just like old times: Tkachuk got twisted up with Tampa Bay’s Brandon Hagel — someone he fought during the 4 Nations Face-Off tournament — after one whistle, took the game’s first penalty on a roughing call (leading to Tampa Bay’s first goal), then made sure his name was all over the score sheet.

Florida coach Paul Maurice, in his in-game, bench interview with ESPN’s Emily Kaplan, said he was comfortable with what he was seeing from Tkachuk in his first game back and expected him to “be the difference-maker” for the Panthers.

“That’s what he is for us,” Maurice said. “He’s got an incredible set of hands, got an incredible gift for the emotional needs of a game, when you need a hit, when you need a big play. He’s been great for us.”

Sam Bennett and Sam Reinhart also scored for the Panthers, and veteran defenseman Nate Schmidt, not known for his offense, added two more goals, as Florida, which won the Stanley Cup last June, hammered an Atlantic Division foe in front of a sellout crowd, setting up an all-important Game 2 on Thursday.

Tampa Bay goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy will need to be sharper in that game, after a Tuesday performance to forget. The two-time Stanley Cup winner allowed all six goals on just 16 shots, closing with a .625 save percentage. Across the ice, Florida’s Sergei Bobrovsky made 20 saves en route to the win.

“The series isn’t won in one game, so there’s a positive. We had a bunch of guys tonight playing their first playoff games, and I thought guys handled it fairly well,” Tampa Bay coach Jon Cooper said. “But in the end, we gave up six goals. We’re a pretty decent defensive team, and we have a very good [penalty-kill unit], and we gave up three [goals] on that. … In the end, those are areas of strength of ours, so I’m pretty confident we can button those up, and we’ll be OK.”

Jake Guentzel, in his first season with the club, and Brayden Point scored for Tampa Bay. But the Lightning played the final 33:30 without center Anthony Cirelli, and it showed. There was no immediate word why the 27-year-old center was out.

“We gave up 16 shots, and that’s usually a good night, but tonight wasn’t that. They’re a good team, we know they have good players,” Tampa Bay defenseman Victor Hedman said. “So, for us, it’s all about refocusing, make sure we have a good practice tomorrow, and get ready for the next one.”

Whether Tkachuk would even play in Game 1 wasn’t certain until just before game time. Tkachuk went through practices Saturday and Monday, then took part in the team’s day-of-game skate Tuesday before the decision on his return was made. Maurice even indicated that it could come down to the final few minutes before the 8:48 p.m. start time of the game.

“It’s not really a guy you can put a label on,” Schmidt said of Tkachuk. “He’s such a unicorn of a player. But, more than anything, just how he is in the room, getting the guys fired up for the game, you feel his energy, you feel his excitement.”

Tkachuk hadn’t played for the Panthers since Feb. 8 because of a lower-body injury suffered during the 4 Nations Face-Off tournament two months ago. He missed the team’s final 25 games of the regular season, yet still finished with 22 goals and 57 points — third most on the team in all three categories. He was also second on the Panthers this season with 11 power-play goals.

“There’s no better time to be an athlete,” Tkachuk told Kaplan in a postgame interview, in reference to the postseason. “This is the time of our lives. And just getting a win here in Game 1 is the cherry on top.”

Panthers forward Brad Marchand, acquired at the NHL trade deadline from the Boston Bruins, made his postseason debut for his new team in the win and also played with Tkachuk for the first time. Marchand had an assist and two shots on net in his 17:15 of ice time, and seemed to fit right in with Florida’s dominant forward group.

“Both teams will look at the tape and find things that they can do better,” Maurice said after the win. “But there isn’t an established identity to the series yet.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Limping Lightning seek ‘another level’ after loss

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Limping Lightning seek 'another level' after loss

Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Ryan McDonagh stated the obvious: The 6-2 humbling they suffered against the arch-rival Florida Panthers on Tuesday night was not how they wanted to begin the latest Battle of Florida.

“It’s definitely a salty feeling in here. We didn’t have a great start to this series like we talked about,” the veteran said. “But we know we can be better. We’ve got another level and we’ll find a way to get to that.”

The Panthers took a 1-0 series lead by scoring six times on 16 shots against Lightning goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy. After Sam Bennett and Jake Guentzel traded goals in the first period, the Panthers scored four straight times — including goals by Nate Schmidt and Matthew Tkachuk that were 14 seconds apart in the second period. Schmidt’s goal was unsuccessfully challenged for goalie interference by the Lightning, earning a delay of game penalty. Tkachuk scored on the ensuing power play to make it 4-1.

“Yeah, you’ve got to stop that bleeding,” defenseman Victor Hedman said. “We give up that third one. The challenge that didn’t go our way and we give up one right away. That’s tough, but we got to make sure it stops there and not give up the fifth one as well.”

Tkachuk, returning to the Florida lineup for the first time after being injured in February’s 4 Nations Face-Off, scored his second of the game on the power play at 9:44 of the second period to make it 5-1 for the Panthers, en route to the 6-2 rout.

“You see him being able to step into a game and be impactful,” Schmidt said of Tkachuk. “That’s who he is. He’s a playoff player.”

Lightning coach Jon Cooper, who has won two of the three Battle of Florida playoff series against the Panthers, appreciated his team’s effort despite the result.

“I love this team. They try. They’re always trying, and they did that again tonight. Sometimes the results aren’t there. Most nights they are,” he said. “We can sit here and dissect this game all we want. The bottom line is we lost. Whether you lose 6-2 or you lose 1-0 in overtime, we lost the game. Turn the page and move on. Let’s sit here in 48 hours or whatever it is and dissect that one. This one’s over.”

The Panthers are the reigning Stanley Cup champion. Cooper noted that a number of his players were seeing their first playoff action in Game 1.

“We had a bunch of guys tonight playing their first playoff games, and I thought guys handled it fairly well. But in the end we gave up six goals,” he said. “The series isn’t won in one game, so there’s a positive.”

That said, it took just one game for the Panthers to flex on the Lightning defense and special teams, going 3-for-3 on the power play. One huge factor in that domination was an injury to Lightning center Anthony Cirelli, their best defensive forward and a key to their penalty kill. He left the game after taking two shifts in the second period. There was no update on his status after the game.

Game 2 is Thursday night at Amalie Arena in Tampa.

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Amaya blast keys Cubs, ‘something you dream of’

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Amaya blast keys Cubs, 'something you dream of'

CHICAGO — Catcher Miguel Amaya was confident he’d be jogging around the bases when he blasted a two-out, ninth-inning baseball high into the Wrigley Field sky with his Chicago Cubs trailing 10-9 to the Los Angeles Dodgers on Tuesday night.

He was right — but just barely.

Amaya’s 388-foot shot landed in the center field basket, sending the home crowd into a frenzy as Dodgers closer Tanner Scott blew the save. And one inning later, the Cubs won the game 11-10 on an Ian Happ run-scoring single off Noah Davis, capping yet another wild affair at Wrigley.

According to Statcast, Amaya’s blast would have been a home run in exactly one park in the majors.

“As a baseball player, its something you dream of,” Amaya said. “As soon as I hit, I felt it was out but then I saw the center fielder getting into position to catch it. Then it was, ‘Oh my god, I have to run,’ but it was enough to get out.

“I love those basket balls.”

It was the second time in five days that both teams playing at Wrigley scored 10 or more runs; on Friday, the Cubs beat the Diamondbacks 13-11 thanks to a six-run eighth inning that was preceded by a 10-run frame by Arizona.

On Tuesday, the Cubs led 5-3 after the first inning, but the Dodgers took a 10-7 lead thanks to a five-run seventh aided by an error from third baseman Gage Workman. As has been the case all month, the Cubs kept fighting back. Right fielder Kyle Tucker brought them within one with an eighth-inning home run before Amaya tied it in the ninth.

“They’ve done some amazing things and some resilient things, most importantly,” Cubs manager Craig Counsell said of the team’s play on its homestand. “You win games like that early in the season and it’s a great carry forward for the rest of the season.”

The Cubs improved to 15-10 thanks to a high-powered offense that leads the league in scoring at just over six runs per game. They’ve tallied 10 or more runs in seven games already, their most through 25 games of a season since 1895, according to ESPN Research. No other team this season has done it more than 3 times.

Counsell credited his bullpen in shutting down the Dodgers in the final few innings.

The Cubs also did well facing Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani. He went 0 for 4, lowering his batting average against them this year to .167. Against all other teams, he’s hitting .302.

He also went 0-for-3 against Shota Imanaga and is now 0-for-10 against the Cubs starter.

“The next 10 at-bats he might get 10 hits,” Imanaga said. “It’s been a small miracle that it’s happened 10 times in a row.”

The Cubs keep on performing miracles at the plate both in the colder conditions this month and in the few games where the weather has been favorable for hitters. That included Tuesday, when it was 71 degrees with the wind blowing out at first pitch. It led to six home runs, none bigger than Amaya’s.

“Basket hurt us a couple times last year,” Counsell said with a smirk. “It was helpful tonight.”

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