We don’t want to bore you with a write-up that reads like Infinite Jest, so here’s a brief outlook on how every team’s approach to the deadline reflects their current state of affairs, both in a current and long-term sense.
Anaheim Ducks: Duck for cover. Sorry, but the NHL’s worst defensive team corroded even further with Dmitry Kulikov and John Klingberg (he was atrocious defensively this year, but the point remains) on the move to Pittsburgh and Minnesota, respectively. Anaheim is going to hemorrhage goals but it will all be worth it if the lottery balls fall in its favor, and they now have 12 picks spanning the first three rounds of the 2023 and 2024 drafts.
Arizona Coyotes: With over 57 percent of their contracts tied to dead cap space, this isn’t just a team tanking for Connor Bedard, it’s an outright embarrassment. People want to joke about Mullett Arena, but it’s a complete failure that the team couldn’t secure a rink with professional capacities. Compounding matters, the Coyotes received a top-five protected pick from the Senators in exchange for Jakob Chychrun — meaning the Senators will still get a super prospect if the pick falls within the top five, and the pick converts to the 2024 Draft, which is shaping up to be the weakest class in ages. Yiiiiiiikes.
The NHL can thank itself for this Arizona Coyotes mess. (Getty)
Boston Bruins: Dmitry Orlov looks downright unstoppable next to Brandon Carlo, while Tyler Bertuzzi and Garnet Hathaway add secondary scoring and grit to the deepest forward group in the league. A team that may break the single-season points record got markedly better. God help us all.
Buffalo Sabres: A pretty neutral deadline for the NHL’s most exciting bubble team. In comes Jordan Greenway, a 6-foot-6 forward who needs to regain his scoring touch. Out goes Rasmus Asplund, who in a vacuum, is a slightly worse player than Greenway. Boring doesn’t make headlines, but the Sabres were wise to keep the status quo, as their young stars continue to develop.
Calgary Flames: The first-ever brother-for-brother deal is a cool piece of trivia, but we’re not sure how the Flames are materially better than they were a month ago. Calgary still boasts one of the best shot creation profiles in the league amid a disappointing season. Are they banking on a return to 2022 form during the final 20 games of the season?
Carolina Hurricanes: Hurricanes owner Tom Dundon promised his team would be aggressive at the deadline. It resulted in Jesse Puljujarvi and Shayne Gostisbhere, two quality players to be sure, but this wasn’t the home run swing we expected from a leading Stanley Cup contender. Dundon and his crew will have the last laugh if Jordan Staal is lifting the trophy in June.
Chicago Blackhawks: Chicago couldn’t even get a first-round pick in return for Patrick Kane, the best player in franchise history. Although Chicago had no real negotiation power, it’s somewhat unfathomable that it couldn’t improve its future prospects in any real way. It’s going to be bleak and if Chicago doesn’t win the lottery, it could be outright hopeless.
Colorado Avalanche: Can a championship hangover last until March? Colorado went about its business quietly, perhaps with a Gatorade in hand, picking up faceoff specialist Lars Eller from Washington in exchange for a 2025 second-rounder. Jack Johnson also returned, while Ryan Merkley is a low-risk, high-upside addition. Clean and efficient business, now someone please turn the lights off until the playoffs start, the Avalanche need to go back to bed.
Columbus Blue Jackets: Jonathan Quick was reportedly incensed about being moved to the Blue Jackets, so they did him a solid and moved him to the Golden Knights. This transaction was a pretty damning indictment of the Blue Jackets, who have nothing to play for but lottery odds.
Dallas Stars: Dallas could surely benefit from additional scoring and picked up Max Domi, who was leading Chicago with 18 goals and 49 points prior to the deadline. Will Domi’s defensive liabilities become a problem in the Stars’ defense-first system? A second-round pick is a relatively cheap acquisition cost but we’re curious to see if Domi is a stylistic fit.
Detroit Red Wings: Dylan Larkin signed a eight-year extension worth $69.8 million, then cried days later when Tyler Bertuzzi was dealt to the Bruins. Oskar Sundqvist, Jakub Vrana and Filip Hronek are also leaving the Motor City. It’s going to be pretty lonely for Larkin, Mo Seider, Lucas Raymond and the rest of Detroit’s core.
Edmonton Oilers: We worried the Oilers were going to sit by and do nothing, but they traded a 2023 first-round pick for Mattias Ekholm. Ekholm is a solid defender who can be used in all situations, but he’s not exactly Erik Karlsson. If Connor McDavid and company can’t get to the Cup final, general manager Ken Holland will draw criticism for not maximizing the prime of the world’s best player.
Florida Panthers: Florida did nothin’ at the deadline, so here’s a fitting musical interlude from N.O.R.E.
Los Angeles Kings: We really like this deadline for the Kings. General manager Rob Blake came under fire for trading Jonathan Quick, but it’s a cold business and he got a better goaltender in Joonas Korpisalo. Vladislav Gavrikov eats minutes and improves the bottom pair, while Los Angeles didn’t give up any of its top prospects or young players, remaining flexible within two timelines.
Montreal Canadiens: Remember when Denis Gurianov went off during the 2020 playoffs? Canadiens general manager Kent Hughes apparently remembers too. It was a quiet deadline otherwise for a bad Canadiens team that remained committed to the tank without giving up good players in the process.
Minnesota Wild: It’s not altogether a bad deadline for the Wild, only that John Klingberg, who has been one of the NHL’s worst defensive defenseman this season, is now joining a team that plays a defense-first system. Klingberg isn’t nearly the same offensive threat that he used to be and the Wild are likely betting that the Ducks were merely a toxic environment. Oskar Sundqvist and Gustav Nyquist at minimal cost to improve the team’s offense — now, that’s some clever work from general manager Bill Guerin.
Nashville Predators: Nashville traded Mattias Ekholm and Mikael Granlund, and Tanner Jeannot for a boatload of picks. It may have been two years too late, but the Predators have realized the dream is over.
New Jersey Devils: The most fun team in the NHL went after the best trade target available, and now Timo Meier joins a fast and explosive forwards corps in New Jersey. More impressive, the Devils didn’t have to trade any of their top prospects — including Luke Hughes and Simon Nemec — or any of their younger roster players like Dawson Mercer, who is on a scoring binge. Massive win, but not to be outdone by their rival across the Hudson.
New York Rangers: Big names, bright lights, welcome to New Yoooooooork. Patrick Kane and Vladimir Tarasenko are both part of the revamped Rangers, but are they somewhat redundant? Both players are past their prime, and both are highly gifted offensive talents that are completely negligent defensively. However, both players have won Stanley Cups — three in Kane’s case. Will their playoff pedigree and scoring output outweigh their clear defensive flaws?
New York Islanders: If you recall, the Islanders started the frenzy by trading for Bo Horvat on Jan. 30. Horvat’s scoring pace has tailed off a bit since joining the Isles and it remains a questionable move especially if the Sabres, with four games in hand, leapfrog the Islanders for a wild-card spot. We’re all for the aggressiveness, but attaching a 2023 conditional first-round pick for Horvat seems to be a shaky decision.
Ottawa Senators: By acquiring Jakob Chychrun, while adding top-five protections to the 2023 first-round pick sent to the Coyotes, the Senators acquired another stellar player who fits into their timeline. The Atlantic powers won’t be going anywhere anytime soon, but Ottawa may have the best under-26 core in the NHL and could still bottom out for Bedard. They’re one of the major winners of the deadline.
Philadelphia Flyers: In the most confusing development of deadline day, the Flyers didn’t end up sending James van Riemsdyk to the Red Wings after all. Flyers GM Chuck Fletcher said they didn’t receive a firm offer for the veteran forward. At least they went out and got penalty merchant Brendan Lemieux? Not a great month for a team that is tanking, no matter what their embattled head coach may say.
Pittsburgh Penguins: Nostalgia is a powerful emotion. Jeff Petry, Dmitry Kulikov and Nick Bonino — who won back-to-back cups with the Penguins in 2016 and 2017 — are heading back to Pittsburgh, in the hopes that the team can catch fire from a wild-card spot and knock off either Boston or Carolina in the opening round. Mikael Granlund’s blazing speed is an asset too, and this team is notably better than it was two weeks ago, but Ron Hextall has destroyed the team’s salary cap. The future doesn’t matter when your team is full of guys that can vividly remember the 1990s.
San Jose Sharks: Sharks general manager Mike Grier botched it during his first trade deadline. Timo Meier was the best player widely available, and while Fabian Zetterlund was playing well for New Jersey, it was a ridiculously underwhelming return for a 26-year-old star in his prime. Erik Karlsson doesn’t seem thrilled about playing on a hopeless San Jose squad. It’s a steep learning curve.
Seattle Kraken: Seattle is quietly confident and made two solid depth moves without subtracting from its roster, adding third-pair defender Jayson Megna from San Jose and forward Oliver Bjorkstrand from Columbus — who has hit the 20-goal mark three times in his career. Solid, analytically-driven moves from a team that leads the NHL in 5-on-5 goals.
St. Louis Blues: One step forward, two steps back. They’re arguably the most confusing team to figure out. St. Louis let Ivan Barbashev for an underwhelming prospect in Zach Dean, they received a first-round pick in exchange for captain Ryan O’Reilly and fourth-line dynamo Noel Acciari, Vladimir Tarasenko went to New York for a package centering a conditional 2023 first-round pick and Sammy Blais. St. Louis also went and acquired Jakub Vrana, who can score in bunches when healthy. They have three first-rounders in this year’s draft but aren’t bad enough to tank. I guess they get points for remaining flexible and 2019 was a long time ago.
Tampa Bay Lightning: Tanner Jeannot’s scoring has fallen off a cliff, but the Lightning have been historically correct about all their deadline acquisitions under Julien BriseBois’s watch, so they get a conditional pass based on their impeccable resume.
Toronto Maple Leafs: If the Maple Leafs fail to get past the opening round, you can’t fault Kyle Dubas for a lack of effort. Ryan O’Reilly and Noel Acciari provide much needed flexibility and defensive awareness, Sam Lafferty is a speed demon, while Jake McCabe, Erik Gustafsson and Luke Schenn provide the team with a ton of depth on the blue line. Dubas approached the deadline like his future was depending on it, and hell, maybe it is.
Vancouver Canucks: We’ll let Tame Impala handle this one.
Vegas Golden Knights: Ivan Barbashev and Teddy Blueger add to the Golden Knights’ scoring depth, while a briefly irate Jonathan Quick joins his previous rival, with all three players joining the team at minimal cost. Vegas didn’t swing for the fences — if they fail to make a deep playoff run, we can question Kelly McCrimmon’s relatively conservative outlook.
Washington Capitals: It appears the Capitals are trying to become younger, while avoiding tanking. Rasmus Sandin should blossom in the nation’s capital — he was playing some excellent hockey before suffering an injury in December. Lars Eller and Marcus Johansson are on their way out. Will the Capitals accelerate a rebuild with Alexander Ovechkin’s consent this summer?
Winnipeg Jets: Nino Niederreiter and Vladimir Namestnikov for second and fourth-round picks, respectively? Jets general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff made his team marginally better for relatively light acquisition costs, and though we’ve ripped into the Western Conference powers for not taking major swings, the Jets are indeed better than they were two weeks ago. Will it be enough for a deep playoff run, though?
MONTREAL – On a night when New York’s top line was missing in action, the bit players grabbed the spotlight and led the Rangers to a commanding 7-2 win over the Montreal Canadiens.
“That’s the kind of team we have,” said Filip Chytil, who led the Rangers with a pair of power-play goals Tuesday. “The guys on the top line had chances but when they don’t score we have three other lines to pick up the slack.”
The Rangers’ dominance was reflected in the amount of time they spent in the Canadiens zone and their 45-23 edge in shots.
“If you’ve watched us practice, you know that’s something we work on all the time,” said Chytil. “When we get the puck, we want to hold on to it.”
The Rangers grabbed a 2-0 lead on goals by Mika Zibanejad at the 56-second mark and Jonny Brodzinski at 2:05, but it was Montreal which pressed the play in the first minute.
“I thought we had a good start but they turned it around on us,” said Montreal coach Martin St. Louis.
Lane Hutson controlled the puck off the opening faceoff and had two early shots, both of which were blocked by New York’s Jacob Trouba.
“That was huge for us,” said Rangers coach Peter Laviolette. “We know (Trouba) can generate offence but he can come up with those big defensive plays.”
Montreal goalie Sam Montembeault exited at 11:05 of the first period after giving up four goals on 10 shots. Zibanejad, Brodzinski, Chytil and Reilly Smith all scored on the Habs’ starter.
His replacement, Cayden Primeau, stopped 33 of 35 shots, giving up goals to Braden Schneider, Kaapo Kakko and Chytil.
Nick Suzuki scored both of the Montreal goals, his first strikes of the season
“It didn’t really feel like a 7-2 game until the end there when you look up at the scoreboard,” Suzuki said. “But we obviously keep digging ourselves these holes, and against a good team like that, our details early on have to be really sharp. And we were definitely a little sleepy coming out and they jumped on us.”
Hutson led the Canadiens in ice time with 24:10 but this wasn’t one of his better games. Smith scored on a breakaway after taking the puck off Hutson’s stick and the rookie was minus-4 for the night.
After Tuesday’s morning practice, the Canadiens announced forward Juraj Slafkovsky will miss at least a week with an upper-body injury. Defenceman Kaiden Guhle missed a second consecutive game with an upper-body injury but the team said it isn’t a long-term ailment.
The injury situation didn’t get any better after Trouba flattened Justin Barron at 7:11 of the third period. Barron didn’t return to the ice but there was no immediate word on his condition.
The Rangers welcomed back defenceman Ryan Lindgren, who made his season debut after missing five games with a jaw injury.
Before the game, 14 players from the Canadiens’ team that won four consecutive Stanley Cups between 1976 and 1979 were introduced at the Bell Centre. Among them were Hockey Hall of Fame members Yvan Cournoyer, Serge Savard, Guy Lapointe, Bob Gainey and Ken Dryden.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 22, 2024.
Shohei Ohtani’s 50th home run ball has sold at auction for nearly $4.4 million, a record high price not just for a baseball, but for any ball in any sport, the auctioneer said Wednesday.
“We received bids from around the world, a testament to the significance of this iconic collectible and Ohtani’s impact on sports, and I’m thrilled for the winning bidder,” Ken Goldin, the founder and CEO of auctioneer Goldin Auctions said in a statement.
The auction opened on Sept. 27 with a starting bid of $500,000 and closed just after midnight on Wednesday. The auctioneer said it could not disclose any information about the winning bidder.
The auction has been overshadowed by the litigation over ownership of the ball. Christian Zacek walked out of Miami’s LoanDepot Park with the ball after gaining possession in the left-field stands. Max Matus and Joseph Davidov each claim in separate lawsuits that they grabbed the ball first.
All the parties involved in the litigation agreed that the auction should continue.
Matus’ lawsuit claims that the Florida resident — who was celebrating his 18th birthday — gained possession of the Ohtani ball before Zacek took it away. Davidov claims in his suit that he was able to “firmly and completely grab the ball in his left hand while it was on the ground, successfully obtaining possession of the 50/50 ball.”
Ohtani and the Dodgers are preparing for Game 1 of the World Series scheduled for Friday night.
LOS ANGELES (AP) — LeBron James gave his 20-year-old son a pep talk before they rose from the Lakers bench. Amid rising cheers, they walked together to the scorer’s table — and then they stepped straight into basketball history.
LeBron and Bronny became the first father and son to play in the NBA together Tuesday night during the Los Angeles Lakers ‘ season opener, fulfilling a dream set out a few years ago by LeBron, the top scorer in league history.
“That moment, us being at the scorer’s table together and checking in together, it’s a moment I’m never going to forget,” LeBron said. “No matter how old I get, no matter how my memory may fade as I get older or whatever, I will never forget that moment.”
Father and son checked into the game against Minnesota simultaneously with four minutes left in the second quarter, prompting a big ovation from a home crowd aware of the enormity of the milestone. The 39-year-old LeBron had already started the game and played 13 minutes before he teamed up with his 20-year-old son for about 2 1/2 minutes of action.
LeBron James is one of the greatest players in NBA history, a four-time champion and 20-time All-Star, while LeBron James Jr. was a second-round pick by the Lakers last summer. They are the first father and son to play in the world’s top basketball league at the same time, let alone on the same team.
“Y’all ready? You see the intensity, right? Just play carefree, though,” father told son on the bench before they checked in, an exchange captured by the TNT cameras and microphones. “Don’t worry about mistakes. Just go out and play hard.”
Their time on court together was fast and furious, just as LeBron promised.
LeBron, who finished the night with 16 points, missed two perimeter shots before making a dunk. Bronny had an early offensive rebound and missed a tip-in, and his first NBA jump shot moments later was a 3-pointer that came up just short. He checked out one possession later with 1:19 left in the second quarter, getting another ovation.
“(I) tried not to focus on everything that’s going on around me, and tried to focus on going in as a rookie and not trying to mess up,” Bronny said. “But yeah, I totally did feel the energy, and I appreciate Laker Nation for showing the support for me and my dad.”
After the final whistle on the Lakers’ first opening-night victory in LeBron’s seven seasons with the team, father and son also headed to the locker room together — but not before stopping in the tunnel to hug Savannah James, LeBron’s wife and Bronny’s mother. The entire family was in attendance to watch history — on little sister Zhuri’s 10th birthday, no less.
Ken Griffey Sr. and Ken Griffey Jr. also were courtside at the Lakers’ downtown arena to witness the same history they made in Major League Baseball. The two sluggers played 51 games together for the Seattle Mariners in 1990 and 1991 as baseball’s first father-son duo.
LeBron first spoke about his dream to play alongside Bronny a few years ago, while his oldest son was still in high school. The dream became real after Bronny entered the draft as a teenager following one collegiate season, and the Lakers grabbed him with the 55th overall pick.
“I talked about it years and years ago, and for this moment to come, it’s pretty cool,” LeBron said. “I don’t know if it’s going to actually hit the both of us for a little minute, but when we really get to sit back and take it in, it’s pretty crazy. … But in the moment, we still had a job to do when we checked in. We wasn’t trying to make it a circus. We wasn’t trying to make it about us. We wanted to make it about the team.”
LeBron and Bronny joined a small club of father-son professional athletes who played together. The Griffeys made history 34 years ago, and they even homered in the same game on Sept. 14, 1990.
Baseball Hall of Famer Tim Raines and his namesake son also accomplished the feat with the Baltimore Orioles in 2001.
In hockey, Gordie Howe played alongside his two sons, Mark and Marty, with the WHA’s Houston Aeros and Team Canada before one NHL season together on the Hartford Whalers in 1979-80, when Gordie was 51.
While the other family pairings on this list happened late in the fathers’ careers, LeBron shows no signs of slowing down or regressing as he begins his NBA record-tying 22nd season.
LeBron averaged more than 25 points per game last year for his 20th consecutive season, and he remains the most important player on the Lakers alongside Anthony Davis as they attempt to recapture the form that won a championship in 2020 and got them to the Western Conference finals in 2023.
Bronny survived cardiac arrest and open heart surgery in the summer of 2023, and he went on to play a truncated freshman season at the University of Southern California. He declared for the draft anyway, and the Lakers eagerly used the fourth-to-last pick in the draft on the 6-foot-2 guard.
LeBron spent the summer in Europe with the gold medal-winning U.S. team at the Paris Olympics, while Bronny played for the Lakers in summer league. They started practicing together with the Lakers before training camp.
The duo first played together in the preseason, logging four minutes during a game against Phoenix just outside Palm Springs earlier this month.
“It’s been a treat,” LeBron said at Tuesday’s morning shootaround. “In preseason, the practices, just every day … bringing him up to speed of what this professional life is all about, and how to prepare every day as a professional.”
The Lakers were fully aware of the history they would make with this pairing, and coach JJ Redick spoke with the Jameses recently about a plan to make it happen early in the regular season.
The presence of the Griffeys likely made it an inevitability for opening night, even though Redick said the Lakers still wanted it “to happen naturally, in the flow of the game.”
The Lakers have declined to speculate on how long Bronny will stay on their NBA roster. Los Angeles already has three other small guards on its roster, and Bronny likely needs regular playing time to raise his game to a consistent NBA standard.
Those factors add up to indicate Bronny is likely to join the affiliate South Bay Lakers of the G League at some point soon. LeBron and Redick have both spoken positively about the South Bay team, saying that player development is a key part of the Lakers organization.
Miami forward Kevin Love, who knew all the James children — Bronny, Bryce and Zhuri — from his time as LeBron’s teammate in Cleveland, said it was “an unbelievable moment” to see father and son playing together.
“I grew up a Mariners fan, so I got to see Griffey and then Griffey Sr. But this is different, because LeBron is still a top-five player in the league,” Love said. “This game, man. It’s why we have that ($76 billion) TV deal. The storylines and the things that happen like this, it’s an unbelievable story. This is really cool to see.”
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AP Basketball Writer Tim Reynolds in Miami contributed.
