NHL
Ilya Sorokin stopped 38 shots and Alexander Romanov and Kyle Palmieri scored to lead the New York Islanders to a 2-1 win over the Boston Bruins. Boston’s lone goal came from David Pastrnak with 9:56 remaining. The Bruins pulled goalie Jeremy Swayman with 90 seconds remaining, but couldn’t force overtime. The win snapped a four-game losing streak for the Islanders. Swayman made 18 saves for Boston, which has dropped five straight including with the last three coming since the NHL season resumed following the 4-Nations Face-off.
Mikko Rantanen had a goal and an assist and the Carolina Hurricanes beat the Buffalo Sabres 5-2. Jordan Staal, Sebastian Aho, Taylor Hall and Seth Jarvis also scored for Carolina, which had lost its first two games after the league break for the 4 Nations Face-Off. Pyotr Kochetkov made 14 saves. Alex Tuch and JJ Peterka scored for Buffalo but it was a quick night for goalie Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, who gave up two goals in the first eight minutes and was replaced by backup James Reimer, who finished with 26 saves.
Evgeni Malkin scored his second goal at 1:03 of overtime and the Pittsburgh Penguins rallied to beat the Philadelphia Flyers 5-4. Malkin scored the tying goal in the third period and added two assists, and Erik Karlsson added two goals and Philip Tomasino also scored for Pittsburgh. Matvei Michkov had two goals and an assist for Philadelphia. Owen Tippett scored his fourth goal in three games and Noah Cates also scored in consecutive games.
Philip Broberg and Dylan Holloway keep showing why the St. Louis Blues poached them from the Edmonton Oilers last summer. Broberg scored twice and Holloway got his 18th goal of the season in a 5-2 victory at the Washington Capitals that keeps them right on the edge of the playoff race in the Western Conference. Broberg and Holloway helped the Oilers reach Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final last season and as restricted free agents went unsigned by the Western Conference champions until August. St. Louis general manager Doug Armstrong signed them to offer sheets that Edmonton declined to match. The Oilers have lost five in a row.
Andrei Vasilevskiy made 27 saves for his fourth shutout of the season and the 38th of his career in the Tampa Bay Lightning’s 3-0 victory over the Calgary Flames on Thursday night. Nikita Kucherov, Erik Cernak and Brandon Hagel scored to help Tampa Bay win its seventh consecutive game. The streak is the Lightning’s longest since a 10-game run Jan. 29 to Feb. 17, 2020. Tampa Bay is 8-0-1 in the past nine games. Dustin Wolf made 20 saves for Calgary. The Flames were shut out for the third time this season.
James van Riemsdyk scored twice and the Columbus Blue Jackets beat the Detroit Red Wings 5-2 in a matchup of playoff contenders. Sean Kuraly, Kent Johnson and Kirill Marchenko also scored for the Blue Jackets, who moved into a tie with Detroit at 66 points for the two Eastern Conference wild cards. Columbus captain Boone Jenner had three assists. Alex DeBrincat and J.T. Compher scored for the Red Wings.
Cole Caufield scored at 3:21 of overtime and the Montreal Canadiens beat the San Jose Sharks 4-3 on Thursday night for their third straight victory since the 4 Nations Face-Off break. Caufield put the puck between his legs to get around Macklin Celebrini, then beat Alexandar Georgiev with a shot over his right pad. Caufield leads the Canadiens with 28 goals. Montreal captain Nick Suzuki scored two first-period goals, and Alex Newhook had his first goal since since Feb. 4. Samuel Montembeault stopped 22 shots for his third win a row. Fabian Zetterlund, Nico Sturm and Will Smith scored for San Jose, Last in the NHL, the Sharks have lost seven straight and 13 of 14.
Nate Schmidt and Carter Verhaeghe had third-period goals, Anton Lundell had a goal and two assists and the Florida Panthers topped the Edmonton Oilers 4-3. Uvis Balinskis also scored for Florida, which jumped Toronto for first in the Atlantic Division. Leon Draisaitl scored his 44th goal for the Oilers, who also got goals from Brett Kulak and Zach Hyman. It was Edmonton’s first time on the Panthers’ ice since June 24, when Florida topped the Oilers 2-1 in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final.
Juuse Saros made 23 saves and the Nashville Predators ended NHL-leading Winnipeg’s franchise-record winning streak at 11 games, beating the weary Jets 2-1 on Thursday night. Filip Forsberg and Tommy Novak scored to help Nashville snap a two-game losing streak. Neal Pionk scored and backup goalie Eric Comrie made 28 saves for the Jets, coming off a 4-1 victory over Ottawa on Wednesday night.
Clayton Keller had a career-high five points — scoring his 22nd goal and assisting on four others — and the Utah Hockey Club beat the Minnesota Wild 6-1 on Thursday night for its fourth straight home victory. Nick Schmaltz had a goal and two assists, Barrett Hayton and Logan Cooley each had a goal and an assist, and Dylan Guenther and Sean Durzi also scored. Karel Vejmelka made 15 saves. Frederick Gaudreau scored for Minnesota, and Marc-Andre Fleury stopped 25 shots.
Frank Vatrano, Cutter Gauthier and Ryan Strome scored in the second period and the surging Anaheim Ducks beat the Vancouver Canucks 5-2 for their fifth consecutive home victory. Jackson LaCombe got a 4-on-4 goal late in the third period for Anaheim and Troy Terry added an empty-net goal to wrap up the Ducks’ eighth win in 11 games. Terry and Strome both finished with a goal and two assists. Tyler Myers and Pius Suter scored in the first period for the Canucks, who then allowed five unanswered goals to fall to 1-3-0 on their five-game road trip.
Ivan Barbashev had two goals and two assists, Vegas scored five times in the first period and the Golden Knights held off the Chicago Blackhawks to win 7-5. The Golden Knights increased their Pacific Division lead to four points over Edmonton. They have won four of their past five games. Chicago has lost four consecutive games, but the Blackhawks got within a goal midway through the third period after trailing 5-1 through one.
NBA
Stephen Curry scored 56 points and made 12 3-pointers in Golden State's 121-115 victory over Orlando. When he has it going like that, his coach just knows some shots are going in. That included one from beyond halfcourt that ended the first half. Curry went on to extend his NBA record by making at least 10 3-pointers for the 26th time and had his 14th 50-point game. Afterward, he tossed his jersey to his mom who was sitting in the stands.
Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 28 points, pulled down a season-high 19 rebounds and dished out seven assists as the Milwaukee Bucks defeated the Denver Nuggets 121-112 on Thursday. Denver's Nikola Jokic shot 13 of 16 and had 32 points, 14 rebounds and 10 assists. Jokic now has 27 triple-doubles in the 53 games the three-time MVP has played this season. This was the first matchup of the season between these two multiple-MVP winners. The Bucks play at Denver on March 26. Brook Lopez added 22 points as the Bucks earned their fifth win in their last six games.
Kyrie Irving scored 18 of his 25 points in the second half and grabbed nine rebounds to lead the Dallas Mavericks to a 103-96 victory over the Charlotte Hornets on Thursday night. Moses Brown, in his penultimate game on a 10-day contract, added 20 points and 11 rebounds in 31 minutes of his first start for the Mavericks. Mark Williams had 26 points and 16 rebounds for the Hornets, who have lost five consecutive games and 16 of their last 19. Miles Bridges had 20 points and 12 rebounds.
The injuries have taken on toll on Zion Williamson during his six-year NBA career. So have the losses. But on nights like Thursday, there are tantalizing reminders of how good the 2019 No. 1 overall pick could become. Williamson finished 27 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists for his first career triple-double in the New Orleans Pelicans 124-116 win over the Phoenix Suns. The Pelicans have won three straight games, matching their longest streak of the season. Williamson’s big night was an encouraging moment in a tough season. Even after their three-game winning streak, the Pelicans have a 16-43 record and are far out of the playoff hunt.
Minnesota Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards will likely be suspended for one game after being ejected and picking up his 16th technical foul of the season during the third quarter against the Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday night. Edwards also could draw a fine after throwing the ball into the stands after being ejected. NBA rules state a player receives a one-game suspension after picking up 16 technical fouls in a season. For every two additional technicals, the suspension will increase by one game.
Gregg Popovich will not coach this season. He is not ruling out a comeback in the future. Popovich met with the San Antonio Spurs on Thursday, releasing a statement afterward to make his decision on this season — and hope for next season — public. The 76-year-old Popovich, the NBA’s all-time coaching wins leader, had a stroke at the team’s arena in San Antonio on Nov. 2 and has been away from the team since. Popovich says “I will continue to focus on my health with the hope that I can return to coaching in the future.”
NFL
Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce plans to play next season rather than retire. The 35-year-old Kelce had been mulling whether to return for a 13th season. But the four-time All-Pro made his feelings clear in a text to Pat McAfee that the host read during “The Pat McAfee Show” on Thursday. The four-time All-Pro wrote he's “coming back for sure.” The Chiefs’ quest to become the first team to win three straight Super Bowls ended with a 40-22 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles on Feb. 9. Kelce professed his love for football several times leading up to the Super Bowl.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers say they're reinstating former coach Jon Gruden into their ring of honor. The move comes less than four years after they removed him from the ring over his use of racist, homophobic and misogynistic language in emails to an NFL executive while he was a television analyst. Gruden resigned from his job as head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders when reports of his comments surfaced early in the 2021 season.
Two-way star Travis Hunter says he won’t work out at the NFL scouting combine this week. The Heisman Trophy winner might play both cornerback and wide receiver in the NFL next season after doing the same at Colorado. Hunter said during his media availability in Indianapolis that it will be up to the team that drafts him to decide his primary position but that he hoped he would be allowed to line up on both sides of the ball. Hunter says “I’ve been doing this for a long time, so I feel like I can keep doing it.”
There’s one reason Hackman’s dazzling acting career stands out for sports fans: His unforgettable role as Norman Dale, coach of the feel-good, state champion Hickory Huskers from a tiny Indiana town. News of Hackman's death hit hard in the basketball-mad state. The movie was ranked as the No. 1 sports film of all-time by The Associated Press in 2020 and was released in 1986. Hackman starred as Dale, a man who was given a second chance at coaching after his first one ended after striking one of his players years earlier.
Rugby league is using an NFL playbook to give Americans another taste of the game this weekend. Australia's National Rugby League is taking its show to Las Vegas — for a second consecutive year — hoping it’ll leave a legacy for the game. Australian Rugby League Commission chairman Peter V’Landys has invited President Donald Trump to come and see for himself. He says he wants to introduce Trump to “the toughest game on earth.” Not to be confused with rugby union — which is played by teams of 15 — rugby league is a 13-a-side game that features bruising tackles, fast-pace attack and no helmets or pads for protection. An NRL doubleheader is on Saturday's four-game program.
GOLF
Jake Knapp has joined the PGA Tour’s sub-60 club. Knapp — the 99th-ranked player in the world — shot a bogey-free 59 in the opening round of the Cognizant Classic at PGA National on Thursday. It's the 15th time that someone has broken 60 in a PGA Tour event. Knapp finished one shot off the tour scoring record of 58, done by Jim Furyk in the final round of the 2016 Travelers Championship. Knapp became the 14th player to shoot a sub-60 round. Furyk is the only one to do it twice.
MEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL
UAlbany 78 UMBC 74
WOMEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL
UAlbany 68 UMBC 60
Syracuse 83 Pittsburgh 65
Niagara 61 Iona 56
Marist 68 Sacred Heart 61
UConn 72 Creighton 53
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