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Sam Mayer spun race leader and archrival Ty Gibbs following a late restart in the Xfinity Series race at Watkins Glen International on Saturday and won for the second time in four weeks.

Gibbs, a Cup Series regular and a rising star at Joe Gibbs Racing, dominated the road-course race in upstate New York. He led 70 of 86 laps, but a late caution bunched up the field and gave Mayer a shot.

Mayer took advantage by nudging Gibbs out of the way as they entered the first turn. Mayer said the contact was accidental.

“I wheel-hopped it,” said Mayer, whose first Xfinity victory came last month at Road America. “I feel bad for doing that, obviously. You don’t want to take out a Gibbs car like that or any car like that. But just trying to get another win in the Xfinity Series. I got a lot of catching up to do.

“I was in there. I put my nose in there. That’s part of it. Fenders are fenders. It’s an accident, but I think everyone can agree that it’s OK for a Xfinity Series regular to win this race.”

Sheldon Creed finished second, with Parker Kligerman, Ross Chastain and Connor Mosack rounding out the top five.

John Hunter Nemechek was sixth and took over the points lead from Austin Hill, who spun late and faded to 14th.

Gibbs collected his car after the spin and came home a disappointing 17th.

“When you have to race out of desperation like that and wheel-hop and clean the leader out, I guess you can call it a racing deal. It just really [stinks]. … Definitely [stinks] to get cleaned out there.”

Gibbs brushed off any notion of chatting with Mayer about the ending and then took a clear shot at his rival. The two have had altercations before, and Gibbs even threw punches at Mayer last year at Martinsville.

“I don’t really know how much of a conversation you can have with him in that situation,” Gibbs said. “We grew up racing each other. I think he has more starts than I do, and this is his second win. Congratulations to him on his second win. Definitely wish I could have gotten my 13th there.”

Gibbs had the field covered all afternoon on the 2.45-mile, multi-elevational track. He blew past Hill on one restart and then skated by Mayer and Justin Allgaier on another with four laps to go.

Herbst’s hiccup

Riley Herbst lost ground in the race for the final playoff spot.

Herbst entered Saturday with a 34-point lead over Parker Kligerman, but Herbst broke a track bar mount late in the second stage and ended the race earlier than expected. Herbst finished 35th, allowing Kligerman to close the gap to three points with three regular-season events remaining.

“As far as the points situation, it’s just frustrating,” Herbst said. “I don’t think we should be in this position. Luckily, next week isn’t the cutoff line for the Xfinity Series and we still have some track for us, for Stewart-Haas Racing. It’s just frustrating that things like this, out of our control, keep happening. It’ll turn around one day, and when it does, we’ll be happy.”

Herbst spent much of his day dealing with transmission issues; he had to hold the shifter in fourth gear throughout practice and the race.

Up next

The Xfinity Series goes to Daytona International Speedway on Friday, with three races remaining before the playoffs.

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Canucks, Boeser agree on new seven-year deal

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Canucks, Boeser agree on new seven-year deal

The Vancouver Canucks have come to terms with forward Brock Boeser on a new seven-year contract, carrying a $7.25 million AAV.

Canucks GM Patrik Allvin announced the deal on Tuesday during the first hour of NHL free agency. Boeser, 28, was an unrestricted free agent on a previously expiring contract.

Drafted by Vancouver 23rd overall in the 2015 NHL draft, Boeser has collected 204 goals and 434 points in 554 games with the Canucks to date. A top-six scoring threat, Boeser has elite playmaking skills and the potential to produce big numbers offensively. He had his best year offensively in 2023-24, producing 40 goals and 73 points in 81 games.

Boeser didn’t hit those marks again last season — settling for 25 goals and 50 points in 75 games — but was still second amongst teammates in output. He also plays a prominent role on Vancouver’s power play and when he can generate opportunities at 5-on-5, he is a true difference-maker up front for the Canucks.

The extension is a happy ending for Vancouver and Boeser. When the regular season ended, Boeser admitted “it’s tough to say” whether he’d be back with the Canucks. Boeser reportedly turned down a previous five-year extension offer with the club and Allvin subsequently looked into deals for him at the March trade deadline, with no takers. Boeser looked — and sounded — poised to explore his options on the open market.

Ultimately, Boeser decided to stay put by committing the best years of his career to the Canucks.

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Jake Allen agrees to 5-year deal with the Devils

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Jake Allen agrees to 5-year deal with the Devils

Jake Allen, one of the top goaltenders available entering free agency, is not heading to the market after agreeing to a five-year deal with the New Jersey Devils, sources told ESPN on Tuesday.

Allen’s average annual value on the deal is $1.8 million, sources told ESPN. That AAV allows the Devils to run back the same goaltending tandem for next season.

Jacob Markstrom has one year remaining on his contract for $4.125 million. Nico Daws is also under contract for next season, before becoming a restricted free agent next summer.

Several teams were interested in the 34-year-old veteran, whom sources said could have made more money on the open market. However, the deal with the Devils gives Allen long-term security. Allen has played for the Blues, Canadiens and Devils over his 12-year-career. He has started in 436 career games.

Last season, Allen started 29 games for the Devils, going 13-16-1 with a .906 save percentage, 2.66 GAA and four shutouts.

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Capitals sign Fehervary to 7-year, $42M extension

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Capitals sign Fehervary to 7-year, M extension

Washington Capitals defenseman Martin Fehervary signed a seven-year extension through the 2032-33 season that is worth $6 million annually, the team announced Tuesday.

Fehervary, who had one year of team control remaining, will enter the final season of a three-year bridge deal that will see him make $2.675 million before his new contract begins at the start of the 2026-27 season.

He finished the season with five goals and a career-high 25 points while logging 19 minutes. Fehervary also played a crucial role in the Capitals’ penalty kill by finishing with 245 short-handed minutes for a penalty kill that was fifth in the NHL with an 82% success rate.

Securing the 25-year-old Fehervary to a long-term deal means the Capitals now have seven players who have more than three years remaining on their current contracts.

It also means the Capitals front office has one less decision to make ahead of what is expected to be an active offseason in 2026 that will see the club have what PuckPedia projects to be $39.25 million in cap space.

That’s also the same offseason in which captain and NHL all-time leading goal scorer Alex Ovechkin‘s contract will come off their books along with that of defenseman John Carlson.

But until then, the Capitals have their entire top-six defensive unit under contract as they seek to improve upon a 2024-25 season that saw them finish atop the Metropolitan Division with 111 points before they lost in the Eastern Conference semifinal to the Carolina Hurricanes in five games.

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