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In 2004, when Ryder Cup captain Hal Sutton paired Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods together at Oakland Hills, it was considered bold.

Not because it was the No. 2- and No. 4-ranked players in the world playing together in one group, but because Mickelson and Woods had a rivalry that was considered unfriendly. The two didn’t say as much publicly, but it was known that they weren’t sharing bottles of wine or comparing calves off the course.

They were partners in two sessions and came away with zero points.

In hindsight, that rivalry now seems benign compared to what current Ryder Cup captain Steve Stricker is dealing with when it comes to the feud between Bryson DeChambeau and Brooks Koepka.

The fact that Mickelson and Woods were paired together at all shows how much more animosity there is between DeChambeau and Koepka, who have said we shouldn’t expect the two to play together at Whistling Straits. Koepka went as far to say that they won’t be hanging out at night or high-fiving after any victories, either.

They both agreed to put the feud aside for the week for the good of the team to try to help the United States to victory over Europe. But even that required a conversation with Stricker and the latter having to act like a parent warning their young children that if they act up in front of company, they’ll be grounded.

Whether we’ll actually see them put the beef aside, or if we’ll see two kids sent to their rooms yelling “He started it,” isn’t the point. It’s that it has gotten to a level that it needs to be addressed and the two will be forced to be civil in what is supposed to be the game’s greatest team event.

Even outside of the Ryder Cup, the clash has taken on such a wave of momentum that PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan announced a new rule geared toward fans yelling, “Brooksy” at DeChambeau during tournaments. Violations could get fans tossed from events.

How did it get to this point? What started this back-and-forth and why has it escalated to the point that the adults in the room had to step in to stop it?

It started with slow play

Before this all moved to social media, Koepka made a comment in January 2019 about slow play at the Dubai Desert Classic.

He didn’t mention DeChambeau by name, but at the time, DeChambeau was at the center of conversation for his methodical approach to each shot.

“I just don’t understand how it takes a minute and 20 seconds, a minute and 15 to hit a golf ball; it’s not that hard,” Koepka said at the time. “It’s always between two clubs. There’s a miss short, there’s a miss long. It really drives me nuts especially when it’s a long hitter because you know you’ve got two other guys or at least one guy that’s hitting before you, so you can do all your calculations, you should have your numbers.”

DeChambeau was asked about it, but responded subtly that a lot goes into a shot and there’s a lot of calculating he’s doing in 45 seconds.

Fast forward to August at the Northern Trust, when a video of DeChambeau taking more than three minutes to hit a 70-yard shot went viral.

Another video went viral that week, showing DeChambeau taking more than two minutes to read an 8-foot putt on the eighth hole. The video showed playing partners Justin Thomas and Tommy Fleetwood visibly bored by the amount of time it was taking to read the putt, only to watch DeChambeau miss the birdie try and tap in for par.

Other players, including Luke Donald, Rich Beem, Joel Dahmen, Eddie Pepperell and Ian Poulter, criticized the video on social media and were vocal that the tour needed to step in and do something about the pace of play.

That, of course, caused DeChambeau to go on the defensive and talk about the criticism he has received. He believed it was unfair and pointed to different factors throughout a round that can contribute to slow play.

DeChambeau also noted that there were other players who were also habitually slow and that when people start talking about his slow play and how he is killing the game, it was unfounded criticism.

“Sure, Eddie Pepperell, not fair to say. I would love to speak to him personally and talk about it, because I played with him, actually, at WGC-Mexico. We can talk about that time that we played it in,” DeChambeau said at the time. “When you start personally attacking people on Twitter, it’s like, come on, dude. Let’s have some more, I was going to say something else, but let’s have some more balls and speak to me to my face about that.”

Koepka didn’t say anything more publicly about DeChambeau at the time, so whether or not there was something said behind the scenes or that made its way to DeChambeau through other channels, it’s unknown.

Something caused DeChambeau to confront Koepka’s caddie, Ricky Elliott, on the practice green. He told Elliott that if Koepka has something to say about his slow play, he should say it to his face.

Koepka said he found that ironic that DeChambeau didn’t go to his face to say it, but rather through his caddie, but he did not immediately go on the offensive. The two seemed to have worked something out at the time and had a private conversation on Sunday of the tournament about the brewing feud.

DeChambeau felt as though he was singled out by Koepka in his comments earlier in the year and that had snowballed into heavier criticism from multiple angles.

“It’s not just him. I know he feels singled out, especially when I’m speaking about it,” Koepka said at the time. “But it’s like I told him, I’ve mentioned his name once, and that’s it. There’s so many guys out here where it’s become an issue, and obviously him being probably the best player that’s relatively slow right now, he’s going to be on TV a lot more, so you’re going to catch a lot more of those type of instances.”

DeChambeau acknowledged the conversation and said it was productive. That the two talked about what Koepka had said and it was explained that it was a generalized comment, not meant to just single out DeChambeau or one person.

That conversation led to both golfers agreeing they should keep their comments internal, that they shouldn’t go public with criticism and should try to keep any disagreements or verbal spats in house.

“It was great. I said, ‘I think we got to start internally so we don’t have these issues come out in public and it creates a bad image for the PGA Tour,” DeChambeau said. “We never want that. So, it was great. We had a great conversation, and have a new level of respect for him.”

That conversation seemed to squash any potential issues that could move forward and they both even appeared on SiriusXM radio together with Pat Perez and Michael Collins, where DeChambeau admitted to his slow play on the greens. There was even some jovial banter between the two with DeChambeau saying Koepka would win in a fight and that, “He’d kick my ass.”

Problem solved, right? Nope.

It’s all about The Body

In January 2020, Koepka appeared in ESPN The Magazine’s The Body Issue with other athletes showing off their physique.

DeChambeau either didn’t know how livestreaming works or didn’t care, because he criticized Koepka’s body while livestreaming himself playing a video game on Twitch.

“I don’t know if his genetics even make him look good, to be honest,” DeChambeau said on video. “That Body Issue, he didn’t have any abs, I can tell you that. I got some abs.”

That went against what Koepka and DeChambeau had agreed upon previously, to keep any issues in-house and not make any statements public, so the choice of words was strange, to say the least. Especially given that on the platform, a video can be recorded and shared on social media.

Koepka responded.

That seemed like a light-hearted jab back at DeChambeau. Maybe DeChambeau’s criticism was made in jest, as well, but either way, we didn’t see much public bickering until July 2020, at the Rocket Mortgage Classic in Detroit.

The tour had just returned from its pandemic shutdown and DeChambeau was featuring his new, bulked-up body and distance off the tee. He had everyone noticing how far he was hitting the ball, but some questioning how he gained so much weight so quickly.

DeChambeau had a confrontation with a cameraman during the tournament after hitting the sand in anger in a bunker. He felt the cameraman was focusing too much on him for too long to capture his outburst. The two had a conversation.

Koepka, who was not playing in the tournament, took notice.

Later in the month, at the WGC-FedEx St. Jude Invitational, DeChambeau hit an errant tee shot near a tree and on top of a stick on the seventh hole. He called over a rules official to see if he could get relief because he believed his ball was resting on an anthill.

He was hoping for relief under the dangerous animal condition, by saying his ball was on a fire ant nest and the fire ants were potentially dangerous. Dangerous to what or whom, who knows.

He was not given relief.

During the second round of the tournament, Koepka hit a tee shot out to the left, in the rough near some trees, and joked to his caddie that he saw an ant. The discussion was picked up by cameras and microphones and, of course, went viral.

Koepka didn’t mention DeChambeau by name in the steroid tweet or his ant remark, but it can be surmised they were aimed at DeChambeau. Similar to his comment at the PGA Championship about his successful play.

He told a reporter in an interview that there’s no reason to be scientific with the numbers, that he’ll just go out and play. That might not have been targeted, but DeChambeau’s nickname is the Mad Scientist.

Things seemed to cool down for a while. Koepka complimented DeChambeau before the Masters in November 2020. DeChambeau was contemplating using a 48-inch driver for the tournament and Koepka said that length is always an advantage and that DeChambeau has done a good job working to hit the ball as far as he does.

One eye roll changes everything

The feud fizzled for a few months then went straight to a rolling boil in May when Koepka was being interviewed by Golf Channel’s Todd Lewis after his second round at the PGA Championship.

Koepka answered a question as the sound of DeChambeau’s spikes clanking against the cement get within Koepka’s earshot. He lost his train of thought, rolled his eyes and cussed on camera, saying, “I lost my train of thought, yeah, hearing that bulls—.”

Lewis tells Koepka they’re going to have fun with that blooper and Koepka said he wouldn’t care if it was released. Naturally, it was leaked by someone and went viral in no time.

DeChambeau saw the video and commented on an Instagram account that posted the incident, saying, “You know you can fix spike marks now.” He was seemingly referring to the metal spikes he was wearing while walking through the video.

What came next was a flurry of shots on social media as DeChambeau prepared to play in The Match, partnering with Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers against Tom Brady and Phil Mickelson.

When the teams and event were announced, Koepka first tweeted at Rodgers about playing with DeChambeau.

Of course, DeChambeau had something to say.

Koepka then replied again with a video of DeChambeau hitting a tee shot while a fan calls him “Brooksy.” In the video, DeChambeau is seen saying, “Whoever is calling me Brooksy needs to get out of here.” Koepka noticed.

The initial tweet from Koepka has more than 110,000 likes. DeChambeau’s reply back has more than 28,000. Koepka’s video reply has more 46,000 likes, showing the reach of the feud online.

Trying to offer some levity, Justin Thomas replied with a GIF of Bill Hader eating popcorn while nodding his head yes. Thomas was all of us that day.

Mickelson tweeted at DeChambeau and Koepka, saying he felt like he was in the middle of something and should step aside. But with Phil being Phil, he added more fuel to the fire on his way out.

The fans have their say

That video tweeted by Koepka escalated the number of fans yelling “Brooksy” at DeChambeau.

It got to the point where three fans were tossed from the Memorial Tournament in June for shouting “Brooksy.” At the time, DeChambeau tried to play it off as best he could and said the chants weren’t impacting him and that the yells were flattering.

He tried his best to make it seem like it wasn’t a bother, but it didn’t stop the fans from doing it.

What probably made it even worse was that Koepka, who wasn’t playing in The Memorial, partnered with Michelob Ultra to give free beer to any fan removed from the tournament.

He started the video by saying, “What’s up guys, it’s Brooksy,” then went on to thank the fans for showing their support by yelling his name.

DeChambeau acknowledged that he saw the video giving away free beer and tried to turn it into a positive.

“I’m happy that there’s more conversation about me, because of the PIP fund,” he said at the time.

The PIP fund is the player impact program that will split a $40 million pot between the 10 golfers that receive the highest-impact score based on social media presence and engagements. So, more mentions equals a bigger opportunity for DeChambeau to get some of that $40 million.

As the feud continued to grow, more yells of “Brooksy” happened at events. Reporters started asking if it had gotten out of hand and if it was actually bad for the game.

Koepka was asked about the feud and the leaked video from his Golf Channel interview. He responded by saying he doesn’t regret anything and that he is OK with everything that he had done up to that point.

“I think it’s good for the game. I really do,” Koepka said. “The fact that golf’s on pretty much every news outlet for about two weeks pretty consistently, I think that’s a good thing. It’s growing the game.”

Growing the game or not, it was becoming bigger than it ever had been. With the Ryder Cup approaching and the idea of the two playing on a team together, Steve Stricker went from an observer to a captain who needed to ensure his players wouldn’t let it be a distraction during the event.

“Yeah, it’s not making my job any easier, you know,” Stricker said in June. “I haven’t talked to either one of them. I will have to at some point. We’ll see where it goes from there. Hopefully, they can put their differences aside for the week, be big boys and come together as a team.”

That month, at the Palmetto Championship, Koepka addressed the idea that it could negatively impact the team.

“I mean, there’s only eight guys that are playing, four guys are sitting, whatever,” He said. “I mean, I play with one other guy. I don’t understand, if let’s say I don’t play with Bryson or Bryson doesn’t play with me, he takes care of his match, and I would take care of my match, and I don’t know how that has any effect. What you do off the golf course doesn’t have any effect on the golf course.”

No regret here

A week later, at the U.S. Open on June 17, DeChambeau saw an opportunity as Koepka was once again being interviewed by Golf Channel. The interview was set up higher than the walkway where players were going by.

DeChambeau saw the cameras and jumped in the air, waving his arms, to video-bomb Koepka’s interview in more of a quiet fashion.

Koepka didn’t notice it live and didn’t acknowledge whether he saw it afterward, either.

But Koepka was asked about the genesis of the feud. He went back to the time DeChambeau approached Elliott and told him if DeChambeau has something to say, that he should say it to his face.

“We both agreed we’d leave each other out of it and wouldn’t mention each other, just kind of let it die off, wouldn’t mention each other’s names, just go about it,” Koepka said. “So, then he decided, I guess he was going on that little, whatever, playing video games online or whatever, and brought my name up and said a few things, so now it’s fair game.”

He was referencing the fact that DeChambeau took a shot at him on his livestream and made it as public as can be, rather than keeping it in-house. Oddly enough, DeChambeau said in July that he didn’t remember what was said in the conversation.

“We just had a conversation that I really don’t know what happened, because we haven’t really bantered back and forth until now,” DeChambeau said. “So, it’s like, why is this happening now?”

At the time of the conversation, DeChambeau had praised Koepka for talking and working things out. He might not remember the context of the conversation, but previously acknowledging that it took place and what the conversation was about made it seem as though he was on the same page as Koepka at the time.

Regardless of whether he remembered the conversation, the feud had gone full-tilt and was as public as it has ever been.

Koepka digs in on social media

In the beginning of July, DeChambeau parted ways with caddie Tim Tucker before the Rocket Mortgage Classic in Detroit. Koepka took the opportunity to again throw shade and tweeted out his support for his own caddie the same day.

DeChambeau was introspective in a media session, telling reporters that he never wanted to be famous growing up. He just wanted to be a golfer. He said he’s human, so naturally he is impacted by things that are said and situations he has been in.

He acknowledged that he hasn’t approached certain situations in the past the best way and that he didn’t set out for this feud to grow into what it is.

“I’m somebody that doesn’t necessarily like controversy. I just like doing my own thing,” he said. “Do I like showcasing something unique and different? Yeah, but I guess what comes with that is controversy, and I guess that’s something that I don’t necessarily deal the best with sometimes.”

That didn’t stop Koepka, though.

On Thursday at The Open, DeChambeau said his driver sucked in an interview after having a poor performance off the tee. He blamed it on the build of the club itself and the physics in how companies create driver heads, instead of his swing.

Koepka pounced on another opportunity.

It’s not just the fact the Koepka says it. It’s the fact that he says it with a smile that shows you how much he’s enjoying taking shots, whether on television or on social media.

At that point, the clash had become somewhat one-sided in the public eye, with Koepka encouraging fans yelling his name at tournaments, tweeting jabs and saying whatever he wanted in interviews.

The captain steps in

Despite the fact that there hadn’t been much back and forth for a while, the Ryder Cup became a bigger point of emphasis in August. Would the two be able to be on the same team? Would they bicker the week of the Ryder Cup? Would it hurt the team chemistry?

Stricker had a conversation with both players and came away assured that the two would be able to quash the beef for the week and that it wouldn’t be a distraction.

“They said it’s not going to be an issue, and I believe them,” Stricker said. “I trust them. As far as I’m concerned, it’s been put to bed.”

Koepka acknowledged the conversation and said he’s willing to put it aside. DeChambeau has refused post-round interviews since before the Olympics, so he hasn’t given his perspective on the feud and the Ryder Cup. But Stricker has said both are on board.

All was well until three days later at the BMW Championship. After a 6-hole playoff, in which DeChambeau lost to Patrick Cantlay, a fan said “Great job, Brooksy,” as DeChambeau was walking toward the clubhouse.

According to ESPN’s Kevin Van Valkenburg, who witnessed the incident, DeChambeau spun around and yelled, “You know what? Get the f— out,” at the fan.

Van Valkenburg said DeChambeau had been dealing with the taunts all week and weathered the storm until that moment.

While Koepka may have agreed to pause the feud, his fans had not.

That moment caused the PGA Tour to get involved, creating a rule that will expel fans for yelling “Brooksy” at DeChambeau.

Now comes the actual Ryder Cup, with the two on the same team as the U.S. tries to bounce back from a rout three years ago in Paris at the hands of the European team. Will these two players on the same team hurt the team? Will fans at Whistling Straits be divided — not by U.S. vs. Europe but by Koepka vs. DeChambeau? Stricker believes he has the players on the same page.

It’s time see if the rivalry takes a break or another chapter of the feud is required.

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NHL free agency tracker: A flurry of signings on July 1

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NHL free agency tracker: A flurry of signings on July 1

There has been no shortage of excitement already this NHL offseason. Following the Florida Panthers‘ second consecutive Stanley Cup championship — and seemingly never-ending celebration — the annual period of roster modification has begun.

The 2025 NHL draft included 224 prospects finding new homes, and the weekend included trades for Noah Dobson, Charlie Coyle and John Gibson. On Monday, a slew of re-signings, and the trade of Mitch Marner, took several big names off the free agent big board.

Below you will find our continuously updated free agency tracker for 2025, featuring a list of every player signed, including average annual value of the contract in most cases. Analysis of the biggest deals can be found here.

Note that the newest deals are on top, denoted by date.

Draft recap: All 224 picks
Grades for all 32 teams
Winners and losers

July 2

Salmon Arm, British Columbia, native Curtis Lazar is headed back to Western Canada, agreeing to terms on a one-year, $775,000 contract with the Oilers.


Veteran winger Anthony Mantha has made the rounds in recent seasons, and his next NHL home is in Pittsburgh, inking a one-year, $2.5 million pact.

July 1

After a brief stint for an American-based team, Andrew Mangiapane is back in Western Canada, inking a two-year, $3.6 million AAV deal with the Oilers.

Deal details


Forward Justin Brazeau has chosen the Penguins as his next NHL destination, inking a two-year, $1.5 million AAV contract.


The Devils continued adding to their forward depth, adding veteran scoring winger Evgenii Dadonov via a one-year, $1 million deal.


The July 1 goalie rush continues. The Mammoth are the latest team to make an addition in the crease, inking Stanley Cup champion Vitek Vanecek via a one-year, $1.5 million deal.


Offensive defenseman John Klingberg is headed to San Jose, agreeing to terms on a one-year, $4 million pact with the Sharks.


One of the top remaining free agents available, veteran forward Mikael Granlund has landed with the Ducks on a three-year deal.

Deal details | Signing grade


Veteran bottom-six forward Lars Eller has chosen the Senators as his next team, agreeing to terms on a one-year, $1.25 million deal.


The Penguins have extended their business relationships with Philip Tomasino (one year, $1.75 million) and Connor Dewar (one year, $1.1 million).


As part of the effort to retake the title of Florida’s best hockey team, the Lightning have inked Pontus Holmberg to a two-year, $1.55 million AAV contract.


The Wild have added Nico Sturm. The former Panther has signed a two-year, $2 million AAV contract.


The Sabres have entered the chat! The club’s first big deal of the day is inking goaltender Alex Lyon to a two-year, $1.5 million AAV contract.


The Kraken add to their goaltending depth, adding former Stanley Cup winner Matt Murray on a one-year, $1 million contract.


The Islanders had themselves a great draft weekend, and they continue the momentum in free agency, adding veteran forward Jonathan Drouin on a two-year, $4 million AAV deal.

Deal details


The Stars are on the board. Hours after announcing the official hiring of Glen Gulutzan as the club’s new head coach, the Stars have brought back forward Radek Faksa on a two-year, $3 million AAV contract.


Earlier on Tuesday the Kings lost defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov to the Rangers. To help fill that blue-line gap, they signed Cody Ceci (four years, $4.5 million AAV) and Brian Dumoulin (three years, $4 million AAV). They also signed goaltender Anton Forsberg for two years, $2.25 million AAV.

Deal details


Defenseman Nick Perbix has thus far only known NHL life as a member of the Lightning. He’ll head to Nashville next, agreeing to a two-year, $2.75 million AAV deal with the Predators.


The Panthers have gone to the veteran defenseman well again, signing Jeff Petry to a one-year, $775,000 contract.

Deal details


Fresh off a Stanley Cup with the Panthers, defenseman Nate Schmidt is joining the Mammoth by way of a three-year, $3.5 million AAV contract.

Deal details | Signing grade


The NHL career of James van Riemsdyk will continue, as he has agreed to terms with the Red Wings on a one-year, $1 million deal. Separately, the Wings added Jacob Bernard-Docker on a one-year, $875,000 contract.

Deal details


The Bruins add to their depth, agreeing to terms with Sean Kuraly on a two-year, $1.85 million AAV pact.


Another key member of the Panthers’ championship roster is returning. Veteran forward Tomas Nosek has agreed to a one-year deal.


After completing the 2024-25 season with the Jets, veteran forward Brandon Tanev is sticking in the Central Division, but heading to Utah by way of a three-year, $2.5 million AAV deal.


Take another goalie’s name off the big board! Kaapo Kahkonen has agreed to terms with the Canadiens on a one-year deal worth $1.15 million. In a separate deal, the club also signed forward Sammy Blais.


The winner of the 2020 Hobey Baker Award as the top player in NCAA men’s hockey, defenseman Scott Perunovich has signed a one-year deal with the Mammoth.


In need of some backup goaltending depth, the Islanders agreed to terms with “Big Save” Dave Rittich on a one-year deal.


Diminutive, versatile forward Kailer Yamamoto is the latest player added by the Mammoth, by way of a one-year, $775,000 pact.


Veteran center Nick Bjugstad has made his decision: He’s joining the Blues by way of a two-year contract.


Veteran defenseman Ryan Lindgren finished the 2024-25 season with the Avalanche, and he’ll head northwest for his next NHL home, agreeing to terms on a four-year, $4.5 million AAV contract.

Signing grade


The Senators haven’t been able to lure any new free agents to the club yet, but their re-signing game remains strong. After re-upping with Claude Giroux, the Sens also continued their business relationship with Nick Cousins via a one-year, $825,000 pact.


Sure to be a fan favorite in Beantown, veteran forward Tanner Jeannot has agreed to terms on a five-year contract with the Bruins, with a $3.4 million AAV.


A sixth-round pick in the 2016 draft, winger Michael Pezzetta is going from Montreal to Toronto via a two-year, $787,500 AAV contract.


Connor Brown impressed a lot of viewers with inspired play during the Oilers’ run to the Stanley Cup Final. Now, he’ll bring that energy to the Devils, who have signed him to a four-year, $3 million AAV contract.


The defenseman market is one key player smaller, as the Rangers have agreed to terms with Vladislav Gavrikov on a seven-year, $7 million AAV contract.

Deal details | Signing grade


One of the top goaltending options available is off the board, with Dan Vladar joining the Flyers via a two-year, $3.35 million AAV contract.

Deal details


Veteran feisty forward Corey Perry is switching sides in the Oilers-Kings rivalry, agreeing to terms on a one-year deal with salary and bonuses worth $3.5 million. Separately, the Kings also signed veteran forward Joel Armia to a two-year deal with a $2.5 million AAV.

Deal details | Signing grade


One of the top available free agents has made a decision … and he’ll be re-signing. Brock Boeser is back with the Canucks by way of a seven-year, $7.3 million AAV contract.

Deal details | Signing grade


Parker Kelly will continue his career with the Avalanche, agreeing to terms on a four-year contract with a $1.7 million AAV.


Veteran forward Colin Blackwell will be returning to the Stars, agreeing to terms on a two-year deal with a $775,000 AAV.


Christian Dvorak has moved on from the Canadiens, agreeing to a one-year, $5.4 million contract with the Flyers.

Deal details


Noah Juulsen, welcome to Philly! The Flyers have inked the 28-year-old defenseman to a one-year, $900,000 deal.


Defenseman Ryan Johnson is sticking with the Sabres, agreeing to terms on a three-year deal with a $775,000 AAV.


The top-rated goaltender slated to hit free agency this offseason will not make it to market; Jake Allen is back with the Devils via a five-year contract with a $1.8 million AAV.

Deal details | Signing grade


Veteran offensive defenseman Tony DeAngelo will be back with the Islanders for 2025-26, agreeing to terms on a one-year, $1.75 million contract.

June 30

The Red Wings will be continuing their relationship with veteran forward Patrick Kane, inking a one-year, $3 million extension.

Deal details | Signing grade


The band is getting back together. After re-upping with Sam Bennett last week, the Panthers re-signed both Aaron Ekblad and Brad Marchand on Monday.

Deal details | Signing grade


Rumors of a Mitch Marner trade popped up during draft weekend, and they came to fruition Monday, as the Maple Leafs inked Marner to an eight-year, $12 million average annual value extension, then traded him to the Golden Knights for Nicolas Roy.

Deal details | Trade grades


The Oilers will not be allowing one of their promising young players to leave via offer sheet, as they signed restricted free agent defenseman Evan Bouchard to a four-year, $10.5 million AAV contract.

Deal details | Signing grade


Veteran defenseman Ivan Provorov would have been one of the most sought-after blueliners on the free agent market. Instead, he’ll be back with the Blue Jackets for the foreseeable future, agreeing to a seven-year, $8.5 million AAV deal.

Deal details | Signing grade

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Springer’s 7 RBIs help Jays pile on Yankees late

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Springer's 7 RBIs help Jays pile on Yankees late

George Springer had a career-high seven RBIs, including his ninth grand slam, and the Toronto Blue Jays celebrated Canada Day by beating the Yankees 12-5 on Tuesday and closing within one game of American League East-leading New York.

The seven RBIs are tied for the second most by any Blue Jays player in a home game, behind Edwin Encarnación (nine RBIs in 2015), according to ESPN Research.

Andrés Giménez had a go-ahead, three-run homer for the Blue Jays, who overcame a 2-0 deficit against Max Fried. After the Yankees tied the score 4-4 in the seventh, Toronto broke open the game in the bottom half against a reeling Yankees bullpen.

Springer went 3-for-4, starting the comeback with a solo homer in the fourth against Fried and boosting the lead to 9-5 with the slam off Luke Weaver after Ernie Clement‘s go-ahead single off shortstop Anthony Volpe‘s glove. Springer has 13 homers this season.

Toronto won the first two games of the four-game series and closed within one game of the Yankees for the first time since before play on April 20.

New York went 2-for-17 with runners in scoring position, dropping to 3-for-24 in the series, while the Blue Jays were 5-for-7. After going 13-14 in June, the Yankees fell to 10-14 against AL East rivals.

The Associate Press contributed to this report.

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Astros’ Alvarez to see hand specialist after setback

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Astros' Alvarez to see hand specialist after setback

DENVER — Houston Astros slugger Yordan Alvarez has experienced a setback in his recovery from a broken right hand and will see a specialist.

Astros general manager Dana Brown said Alvarez felt pain when he arrived Tuesday at the team’s spring training complex in West Palm Beach, Florida, where he had a workout a day earlier. Alvarez also took batting practice Saturday at Daikin Park.

He will be shut down until he’s evaluated by the specialist.

“It’s a tough time going through this with Yordan, but I know that he’s still feeling pain and the soreness in his hand,” Brown said before Tuesday night’s series opener at Colorado, which the Astros won 6-5. “We’re not going to try to push it or force him through anything. We’re just going to allow him to heal and get a little bit more answers as to what steps we take next.”

Alvarez has been sidelined for nearly two months. The injury was initially diagnosed as a muscle strain, but when Alvarez felt pain again while hitting in late May, imaging revealed a small fracture.

The 28-year-old outfielder, who has hit 31 homers or more in each of the past four seasons, had been eyeing a return as soon as this weekend at the Los Angeles Dodgers. Now it’s uncertain when he’ll play.

“We felt like he was close because he had felt so good of late,” Brown said, “but this is certainly news that we didn’t want.”

Also Tuesday, the Astros officially placed shortstop Jeremy Peña on the 10-day injured list with a fractured rib and recalled infielder Shay Whitcomb from Triple-A Sugar Land.

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