Rizzo’s broken fingers better before World Series
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Jesse Rogers, ESPN Staff Writer
The days off between the ALCS and the World Series have been especially helpful for New York Yankees first baseman Anthony Rizzo as he continues to recover from two broken fingers on his right hand, the veteran said in a video call with reporters on Wednesday.
Rizzo, 37, played through pain in the Yankees’ win over the Cleveland Guardians last round, hitting .429 during the five game series. Game 5 was on Saturday, giving Rizzo five full days of recovery time before the World Series begins against the Los Angeles Dodgers this Friday.
“The biggest thing is getting the swelling out,” Rizzo explained. “Between games it blows up, just from the pressure. The bones are still broken but to be able to get the swelling out has been key. Hopefully in the series we’ll be able to battle the best we can.”
Rizzo was hit by a pitch at the end of the regular season forcing him to miss the ALDS, but he was added to the roster for the ALCS and performed beyond expectations. He was 6-for-14 with a double and two walks, seeing his first action in several weeks.
“I can’t even believe it to be honest with you,” teammate Austin Wells said. “It’s a pretty incredible thing, to have two broken bones in your hand and go out there and do what he’s been able to do. I don’t have a lot of words for that. It shows how tough he is and the character that he has and his willingness to be out there and go through whatever it takes to help the team win.”
Rizzo indicated the team has some “good medicine” to help him get through each game. He could be a key bat in the lower half of the Yankees’ lineup as the Dodgers don’t have a multitude of lefty relievers to use on him and fellow lefties Juan Soto, Alex Verdugo and Jazz Chisholm.
Adrenaline and the excitement of being in the World Series also help Rizzo deal with the pain. He expressed an understanding that these moments don’t come along very often.
“This is what you dream of,” Rizzo said. “This is what you prepare for. When the crowd is loud and everything is going crazy, I feel like that’s when I settle down the most.”
Rizzo is one of a few Yankees with World Series experience, having won a championship with the Chicago Cubs in 2016. He has been asked a lot of questions by teammates about playing in the Fall Classic.
“Guys ask what was it like,” he said. “That [2016] World Series was arguably one of the best World Series ever. Now I get to be [in] another, what could shape out to be, one of the best World Series ever.”
Rizzo will go up against good friend and Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman, who has been nursing his own injury, an ankle ailment which kept him out of the lineup in several games of the NLCS.
“He’s a gamer,” Rizzo said of Freeman. “He’s putting it all on the line for his team. I wouldn’t expect anything less from him. It will be fun to share the field with him on the World Series stage.”
Wells is also excited for the series but comes at it from a different place than Rizzo. He’s going through the postseason in his first full year in the big leagues. It’s a lot to take in.
“I don’t think any of this has processed for me yet,” Wells said. “We’re just going to keep rolling and keep winning, After it’s all said and done, it will be a lot crazier for me in my own eyes. At the moment I just feel like I’m in it and trying to help the team win.”
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Kristen Shilton
The NHL fined the Ottawa Senators $25,000 and forward Nick Cousins $2,083.33 for an incident of “unsportsmanlike conduct” in warmups ahead of Game 3 of the team’s first-round Stanley Cup playoff series against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday.
Cousins’ fine is the maximum allowed to a player under the NHL/NHLPA collective bargaining agreement.
With warmups underway, Cousins was spotted flipping a puck across the center ice line at Maple Leafs goaltender Anthony Stolarz as he went through his pregame routine.
The two players have history as teammates with Philadelphia Flyers from 2016-17 and with the Stanley Cup-winning Florida Panthers last season. Senators coach Travis Green emphasized that familiarity when asked about the NHL’s investigation Friday, while otherwise keeping his answer lighthearted.
“It’s an active investigation. I don’t know if I should be commenting,” said Green, drawing laughter from the gathered media. “I have people that have advised me maybe not to comment on it.
“I’m kidding. I saw the video. Stolarz and Cousins have played together. [Cousins] is probably trying to laugh at him or make a joke or get him off his game. It is what it is.”
Green went on to confirm he had spoken to Cousins about the puck flip.
“[He just said] I know him,” Green said of Cousins’ reasoning. “Game within the game. Happens probably a lot more than you think.”
Toronto took a commanding 3-0 lead in the best-of-seven series with a 3-2 overtime victory. Ottawa will try to stave off elimination in Game 4 on Saturday.
MONTREAL — Montreal‘s Patrik Laine is out for Friday’s Game 3 of the Canadiens’ first-round playoff series against Washington because of an upper-body injury.
Laine missed the team’s morning skate, and the Canadiens said he will be evaluated daily.
Laine, 27, was benched for the third period of Wednesday’s 3-1 loss in Game 2 after a difficult first two periods. Kasperi Kapanen replaced Laine, while defenseman Arber Xhekaj was inserted into the lineup for Jayden Struble.
The Capitals lead the best-of-seven series 2-0.
Laine, known for his dangerous shot, hasn’t scored in his past seven games.
The Canadiens acquired Laine and a second-round draft pick from the Columbus Blue Jackets last summer for defenseman Jordan Harris.
Laine had 20 goals, including 15 on the power play, and 13 assists in 52 games this season after missing the first two months with a knee injury.
“We have some guys battling things, so we’ll see what we start with tonight,” Canadiens coach Martin St. Louis said earlier Friday. “Obviously in a series, during games, you make adjustments. That’s part of a best-of-seven.”
Montreal is hosting its first playoff game in front of a sold-out crowd since 2017. The Canadiens played in an empty, or reduced-capacity, Bell Centre during their run to the Stanley Cup Final in 2021.
The Edmonton Oilers are making a goaltender change, putting Calvin Pickard in the crease for Game 3 of their Western Conference first-round series against the visiting Los Angeles Kings.
Looking to avoid being pushed to the brink of elimination, the Oilers are turning to Pickard after Stuart Skinner yielded 11 goals on 58 shots as the Kings captured a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven series.
Pickard relieved Skinner midway through the third period of Game 2 on Wednesday, allowing one goal on three shots.
The journeyman goaltender was asked Friday afternoon how he plans to approach Game 3.
“The same way I’ve approached every game as an Oiler: go out and do my job and give our team a chance to win,” Pickard said. “Obviously the last two games didn’t go as planned in all facets, but we know we have a better effort in this locker room and we know we’re going to do that tonight.”
Oilers coach Kris Knoblauch said after Game 2 that he would get together with his coaching staff and decide on a starting goaltender. But Knoblauch added that he believed Skinner was not at fault for the team’s defensive troubles in this series.
“I don’t think there’s been any bad goals. There’s been a lot of goals, but the chances that we’re giving up are Grade A’s,” Knoblauch said. “I’m not sure that are many, ‘Geez, where’s the save there?’ It’s been very difficult for a goaltender playing. More structure and the less we’re giving up those opportunities, it’s a lot easier for Stuart Skinner or Calvin Pickard playing.”
Pickard, 33, posted a 22-10-1 record with a 2.71 goals-against average and .900 save percentage in 36 games (31 starts) during the regular season. Skinner, 26, was 26-18-4 with a 2.81 GAA and a .896 save percentage over 51 games (50 starts) during the regular season.
Information from ESPN’s Ryan S. Clark and Field Level Media was used in this report.
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