Connect with us

Published

on

Entering the penultimate week of the NHL regular season, the playoff races — particularly for the wild cards — continue to captivate us. If it seems like every game seems to have major playoff implications, that’s not a gigantic stretch of the truth.

So which games on this week’s calendar are of most interest to our writers? Looking ahead a bit, which playoff opponent will give the Boston Bruins the most trouble en route to the Stanley Cup? And though the San Jose Sharks were eliminated weeks ago, defenseman Erik Karlsson‘s quest for 100 points continues; will he reach that plateau, and does he have the Norris Trophy wrapped up?

Our reporters and analysts are here to answer those very questions:

What’s the biggest game of the week?

Ryan S. Clark, NHL reporter: Calgary Flames vs. Winnipeg Jets on Wednesday (7:30 p.m. ET, NHL Power Play on ESPN+). Do the Flames have enough to snatch that final wild-card spot? Do the Jets have enough to get a firmer grip? Nobody can really answer those questions with great certainty. What is clear, however, is that this should be enlightening and entertaining all at once.

Victoria Matiash, NHL analyst: The wild-card race in the East, featuring the Pittsburgh Penguins and Florida Panthers neck and neck — never mind the currently unsettled New York Islanders — fascinates me to no end. So I’ve got Thursday’s game between Florida and the Ottawa Senators (7 p.m. ET, NHL Power Play on ESPN+) marked on my viewing calendar, riding shotgun with Pittsburgh hosting the Minnesota Wild (7 p.m. ET, NHL Power Play on ESPN+). Both playoff wannabes first compete Tuesday, so by then we might have a clearer picture of who’s in the WC2 driver’s seat ahead of the season’s last weekend. Assuming, of course, the Isles don’t blow it either.

Kristen Shilton, NHL reporter: Edmonton Oilers at Los Angeles Kings on Tuesday (10:30 p.m. ET, ESPN). The Oilers and Kings are neck and neck to challenge Vegas for the top spot in the Pacific Division. Odds improve for one of them with a victory on Tuesday. Alternatively, that game could be billed as a first-round playoff series preview between two evenly matched teams that have recent history — L.A. took Edmonton to seven games in last season’s first-round matchup. This year’s iteration would be even spicier.

Greg Wyshynski, NHL reporter: Minnesota Wild at Vegas Golden Knights on Monday (8 p.m. ET, NHL Network). The Wild have absolutely slammed the pedal down in recent weeks — despite missing Kirill Kaprizov — to stake a claim for the Central Division title. The Golden Knights are trying to fend off the Oilers and Kings to win the Pacific — and avoid having to play either of them in the opening round of the playoffs. This one is a rematch of Saturday’s battle and a potential preview of the Western Conference finals.


Which team will give the Bruins the most trouble in the playoffs?

Clark: The Tampa Bay Lightning. Maybe this is the year in which the Bruins — or another team — break the Lightning’s death grip on the Eastern Conference. Until then, the Lightning must remain in the discussion given what they have done over the past few seasons.

Matiash: The Toronto Maple Leafs. In addition to the firepower up front, the Maple Leafs’ freshened caboodle of defenders offers coach Sheldon Keefe numerous permutations and combinations in figuring out how to best stop Boston’s own offense. Plus, the club’s No. 1 netminder doesn’t care about the storied recent playoff history between the two sides. Ilya Samsonov doesn’t seem bothered by much on ice these days. Even more so since becoming a father. He’s chill — an ideal state if/when facing the best team in the league.

Shilton: The Maple Leafs. Yes, we’re all aware of the postseason history between these clubs. But this season is its own beast. Toronto and Boston have played three times already, with two of those tilts decided by one goal. The Leafs have ample forward talent capable of skating toe-to-toe with the Bruins’ top threats, and Toronto can stack up fairly well with Boston defensively, too. It certainly wouldn’t be an easy road ahead for the Bruins.

Wyshynski: The Carolina Hurricanes. One of the few teams to hand the Bruins a loss this season, the Canes actually have a plus-1 goal differential against Boston. Their two losses to the Bruins were both in extra time. Without Andrei Svechnikov and Max Pacioretty (one assumes), generating goals in a tight series is going to be a chore for the Hurricanes. But they beat the Bruins in seven games last postseason, and they have the systems and the players to grind out a good playoff effort. Underestimate Rod Brind’Amour’s group at your own peril.


We’ve heard a lot about Connor McDavid this season, but Erik Karlsson is also having a standout campaign. How many points will he finish with, and does he win the Norris Trophy?

Clark: Let’s go with 100 points, and, yes, he should have a chance at winning the Norris Trophy. Whether he will depends upon how voters feel about giving the award to a defenseman on a draft lottery team.

Matiash: If he breaks the 100-point barrier? Of course he wins the Norris Trophy. That’s the law. Or at least it should be, considering Brian Leetch was the last player to do just that … 31 years ago. I don’t care how few wins the Sharks have, Karlsson deserves something for such an incredible accomplishment. This award is the one available. And, yes, I believe he pulls it off, wrapping up with 101 altogether.

Shilton: Predicting a 98-point finish for Erik Karlsson this season. I wouldn’t be surprised if he hit triple digits, but sometimes just the pressure of a big number can throw a player off. And I do believe it’ll be Karlsson earning a third Norris Trophy this year, not just for his offensive output, but the way he’s kept San Jose as reasonably competitive as a single skater can. It would be hard to argue any defenseman in the league has a) been consistently better or b) had a bigger nightly impact on his squad than Karlsson. After the road Karlsson’s been through to get back on form, this Norris title would be extra special.

Wyshynski: The final NHL Awards Watch column of the season publishes this week, and I don’t think it’s a spoiler that Karlsson still leads the pack with the voters we surveyed. After four assists on Saturday, I think he breaks 100 points, a mark only five other defensemen have hit in NHL history. Let’s call it 101 points in the end. The last great offensive season by a defenseman was Roman Josi tallying 96 points for the Nashville Predators last season.

I don’t recall the same kind of hyperbole around Josi’s offensive effort that Karlsson has received for his. Josi was second for the Norris to Cale Makar, because it was Makar’s “time” to win. The next most popular candidate for the Norris this season is the Rangers’ Adam Fox, who already has a Norris win to his credit. So I’d expect the voters to give Karlsson his flowers for the third time overall and first time since 2015.

Continue Reading

Sports

Sovereignty rallies to win Jim Dandy at Saratoga

Published

on

By

Sovereignty rallies to win Jim Dandy at Saratoga

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. — Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes champion Sovereignty rallied after losing position heading into the final turn to win the $500,000 Jim Dandy by a length at Saratoga on Saturday.

Ridden by Junior Alvarado, Sovereignty ran nine furlongs in 1:49.52 and paid $3 to win as the 1-2 favorite against four rivals, the smallest field of his career.

Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott said Sovereignty would be pointed toward the $1.25 million Travers on Aug. 23 at the upstate New York track.

Approaching the turn, there were a few tense moments as it appeared Sovereignty was retreating when losing position to the advancing Baeza and deep closers Sandman and Hill Road, leaving Sovereignty in last for a few strides.

Alvarado said he never had a doubt that Sovereignty would come up with his expected run.

“It was everybody else moving and at that time I was just like, ‘Alright let me now kind of start picking it up,'” Alvarado said. “I had 100% confidence. I knew what I had underneath me.”

Baeza, third to Sovereignty in both the Derby and Belmont, finished second. Hill Road was another 9¼ lengths back in third. Mo Plex was fourth and Sandman fifth.

Continue Reading

Sports

Briscoe wins Brickyard 400 pole, his 5th of season

Published

on

By

Briscoe wins Brickyard 400 pole, his 5th of season

INDIANAPOLIS — Chase Briscoe became the first driver to win poles at NASCAR’s first three crown jewel races in one season Saturday, taking the Brickyard 400 pole with a fast lap of 183.165 mph.

His late run bumped Bubba Wallace out of the top starting spot.

The Joe Gibbs Racing driver has won nine career poles, five coming this season including those at the Daytona 500, Coca-Cola 600 and now the only race held in Briscoe’s home state. He’ll have a chance to complete a crown jewel sweep at the Southern 500 in late August.

Briscoe has the most pole wins this season, his latest coming on Indianapolis Motor Speedway’s 2.5-mile oval. It also came on the same weekend his sister was married in Indiana. Briscoe has never won the Brickyard.

Wallace starts next to Briscoe on the front row after posting a lap of 183.117 mph. Those two also led a pack of five Toyotas to the front of the field — marking the first time the engine manufacturer has swept the top five spots.

Qualifying was held after a brief, rescheduled practice session. Friday’s practice was rained out.

Briscoe’s teammate, Ty Gibbs, has the early edge in the championship round of NASCAR’s first In-Season Challenge. He qualified fifth at 182.445. Ty Dillon starts 26th. The winner will be crowned champion and walk away with $1 million.

Last week’s race winner Denny Hamlin faces a major hurdle in winning his first Brickyard title. He crashed hard during qualifying and will start from the back of the field, 39th, as he tries to become the fifth driver to complete a career sweep of the Cup’s crown jewel races. The 44-year-old Hamlin signed a two-year contract extension with JGR on Friday.

Defending race winner Kyle Larson starts 13th.

Continue Reading

Sports

Building the perfect trade deadline for the Mets and Phillies

Published

on

By

Building the perfect trade deadline for the Mets and Phillies

There’s plenty of history in the rivalry between the New York Mets and Philadelphia Phillies. It’s about 116 miles from Citi Field to Citizens Bank Park. The two teams been competing for the NL East since 1969. Star players from Tug McGraw to Jerry Koosman to Lenny Dykstra to Pedro Martinez to Zack Wheeler have played for both franchises. Mets fans loathe the Phanatic, and Phillies fans laugh derisively at Mr. Met.

Despite this longevity, the two teams have rarely battled for a division title in the same season. The only years they finished No. 1 and 2 or were battling for a division lead late in the season:

  • 1986: Mets finished 21.5 games ahead

  • 2001: Both finished within six games of the Braves

  • 2006: Mets finished 12 games ahead

  • 2007: Phillies finished one game ahead

  • 2008: Phillies finished three games ahead

  • 2024: Phillies finished six games ahead of Mets and Braves

So it’s a rare treat to see the Mets and Phillies battling for the NL East lead in as New York faces the San Francisco Giants on “Sunday Night Baseball” this week. This season has also been a bit of bumpy ride for both teams, so there is pressure on both front offices to make trade deadline additions in hopes of winning the World Series that has eluded both franchises in recent years despite high payrolls and star-laden rosters. Let’s dig into what both teams need to do before Thursday.

The perfect trade deadline for the Mets

1. Bullpen help

The Mets already acquired hard-throwing lefty Gregory Soto from the Orioles, but David Stearns will likely look for another reliever, given that the Mets’ bullpen has struggled since the beginning of June with a 5.02 ERA. In my grade of the trade, I pointed out the importance for the Mets to add left-handed relief. Think of potential playoff opponents and all the key left-handed batters: Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper on the Phillies; Shohei Ohtani, Freddie Freeman and Max Muncy on the Dodgers; Kyle Tucker, Michael Busch and Pete Crow-Armstrong on the Cubs.

Soto has held lefties to a .138 average this season, and it does help that the Mets have two lefty starters in David Peterson and Sean Manaea. They also just activated Brooks Raley after he had been out since early 2024. If he is back to his 2022-23 form, when he had a 2.74 ERA and held lefties to a .209 average, maybe the Mets will feel good enough about their southpaw relief.

They could still use another dependable righty reliever. Mets starters were hot early on, but they weren’t going deep into games, and outside of Peterson, the lack of longer outings is a big reason the bullpen ERA has skyrocketed. Carlos Mendoza has overworked his setup guys, including Huascar Brazoban and Reed Garrett. Brazoban has never been much of a strike thrower anyway, and Garrett similarly faded in the second half last season. Adding a high-leverage righty to set up Edwin Diaz makes sense. Candidates there include David Bednar of the Pirates, Ryan Helsley of the Cardinals, Griffin Jax or Jhoan Duran of the Twins, or maybe a longer shot such as Emmanuel Clase or Cade Smith of the Guardians.

2. Think big, as in Eugenio Suarez

Mark Vientos was a huge key to last season’s playoff appearance and trip to the NLCS, hitting .266/.322/.516 with 27 home runs after beginning the season in Triple-A. He hasn’t been able to replicate that performance, though, hitting .224/.279/.354. That has led to a revolving door at third base, with Vientos, Brett Baty and Ronny Mauricio starting games there in July. Overall, Mets third basemen ranked 24th in the majors in OPS entering Friday.

Lack of production at third is one reason the Mets’ offense has been mediocre rather than very good — they’re averaging 4.38 runs per game, just below the NL average of 4.43. They could use another premium bat, given the lack of production they’ve received from center field and catcher (not to mention Francisco Lindor‘s slump since the middle of June). Maybe Francisco Alvarez‘s short stint back in Triple-A will get his bat going now that he’s back in the majors, but going after Suarez to hit behind Juan Soto and Pete Alonso would lengthen the lineup.

3. Reacquire Harrison Bader to play CF

Tyrone Taylor is a plus defender in center and has made several incredible catches, but he’s hitting .209/.264/.306 for a lowly OPS+ of 65. Old friend Bader is having a nice season with the Twins, hitting .251/.330/.435. Maybe that’s a little over his head, given that he had a .657 OPS with the Mets last season, but he would still be an offensive upgrade over Taylor without losing anything on defense — and he wouldn’t cost a top-tier prospect. The Mets could still mix in Jeff McNeil against the really tough righties, but adding Suarez and Bader would give this lineup more of a championship feel.

The perfect deadline for the Phillies

1. Acquire Jhoan Duran

Like the Mets, the Phillies already made a move here, signing free agent David Robertson, who had a 3.00 ERA and 99 strikeouts in 72 innings last season with the Rangers. On paper, he should help, but he’s also 40 and will need a few games in the minors to get ready. Even with Robertson, the Phillies could use some more help here. They’ll eventually get Jose Alvarado back from his 60-game PED suspension, but Alvarado is ineligible for the postseason. At least the Mets have an elite closer in Edwin Diaz. Jordan Romano leads the Phillies with eight saves and has a 6.69 ERA. Matt Strahm is solid, but more useful as a lefty setup guy than a closer (think of all those left-handed batters we listed for the Mets, then sub out Juan Soto and Brandon Nimmo for Harper and Schwarber).

And the Phillies’ bullpen has consistently come up short in big games. Think back to last year’s NLDS, when Jeff Hoffman lost twice to the Mets. Or 2023, when Craig Kimbrel lost two games in the NLCS against the Diamondbacks. Or the 2022 World Series, when Yordan Alvarez hit the huge home run off Alvarado in the clinching Game 6.

So, yes, a shutdown closer is a must. Maybe that’s Bednar, maybe Clase if he’s available (although he struggled in last year’s postseason), maybe Helsley. But the guy Dave Dombrowski should go all-in to get: Duran. The window for the Phillies is slowly closing as the core players get older. Duran is under control through 2027, so he’s a fit for now and the immediate future. The trade cost might be painful, but with his 100 mph fastball and splitter, he has the elite stuff you need in October.

2. Add Ryan O’Hearn

The Phillies have received below-average production from both left field (mostly Max Kepler) and center field (Brandon Marsh/Johan Rojas platoon). The center-field market is pretty thin except for Bader or maybe a gamble on Luis Robert Jr. I’d pass on Robert, stick with the Marsh/Rojas platoon and upgrade left field with O’Hearn, who is hitting .281/.375/.452 for the Orioles. He isn’t the perfect fit since, like Kepler, he hits left-handed and struggles against lefties, but he’s a patient hitter with a much better OBP, and he’s passable in the outfield.

3. Acquire Willi Castro

Here’s the bottom line: The Phillies have to admit that some of their long-term position players aren’t getting the job done — such as second baseman Bryson Stott, who has a 77 OPS+. Third baseman Alec Bohm has been better but also has a below-average OPS.

That makes Castro a nice fit. He’s not a star, but he’s an above-average hitter, a switch-hitter who plays all over the field for the Twins, having started games at five different positions. He could play second or third or start in left field against a lefty. Philadelphia could even start him in center instead of Rojas, although that would be a defensive hit. Bottom line: Castro would give the Phillies a lot more versatility — or a significant offensive upgrade over Stott if they start him every day at second.

Note as well: Stott has hit .188 in 33 career postseason games. Bohm has hit .214 with two home runs in 34 postseason games. The Phillies need a different offensive look for October.

Continue Reading

Trending