Making his first NHL appearance in 20 months due to his battle with mental health issues, the 26-year-old Flames defenceman was welcomed back to the league in stirring fashion Thursday.
As he stood on the blueline with spotlights shining down on him, the soft-spoken Swede was introduced as part of the starting lineup, spurring a rousing, lengthy ovation for the lad.
Some stood.
The message: you’re not alone.
He felt that.
“It’s touching for sure, it really is,” said Kylington, who nodded his appreciation and clapped back towards the crowd.
‘It’s touching’: Flames’ Kylington moved by fan support during season debut
“I just want to give it back.
“I just want to show my abilities on the ice, and I think that’s my way to give it back.”
He did just that, in flashes, reminding himself and the fans what the gunslinging speedster brings to the game.
But before he got that long-awaited chance to carve out 13 minutes of ice time alongside third-pairing partner Jordan Oesterle, he really soaked in the support he never knew he had until his return neared this week.
“This was nothing I could ever expect,” he smiled.
“When you see people writing to you, people cheering for you, applauding you, it really touches you in a way where I wasn’t expecting.
“It means a lot.”
So did being named a starter, which was symbolic of how much the team has striven to be as supportive as possible for him.
“Husk didn’t have to do that, but it was nice to see the crowd cheering my name,” he beamed.
After all, as he said after his first practice with the team Monday, there were times he didn’t think he would ever be here again.
“It’s hard to go back and sum everything up, but just happy to be back and doing what I love to do,” he told Ryan Leslie on the Sportsnet broadcast after the first period.
‘Didn’t think I was going to be here’: Flames’ Kylington on emotional return to NHL
“It’s special. I’m happy to be here and happy to be playing again.
“I had butterflies in my stomach.
“Feels good.”
Feels, well, normal – something he’s been striving for the better part of two years.
“Everything felt normal,” he said, making it clear he still has plenty of work to do to get back up to speed.
“Guys made it pretty easy for me to come in.”
The roar was loud late in the first period when Kylington used his speed to drive to the net for a quality scoring chance that he said served as notice he was back.
Yet, despite the energy his story generated, it wasn’t enough for his teammates to ride to victory.
Instead, Kylington’s feel-good evening masked a 5-2 loss to a Columbus Blue Jackets club that hadn’t won a regulation game in 13 outings.
Backlund frustrated after Flames’ fourth straight loss on home ice
Breaking a 2-2 tie after two periods with three unanswered goals in the third, the Jackets helped the Flames serve unofficial notice they’re no longer playoff contenders.
“It’s unacceptable – four straight losses at home when you’re trying to make the playoffs to teams we need to beat,” said Chris Tanev, summing their latest collapse up nicely.
“We’re obviously not playing how we were a week ago. We were progressing and playing how we wanted to, and playing the right way.”
No longer.
Bring back the dads.
The news gets worse.
A.J. Greer suffered a Joe Theismann-like ankle injury that will almost certainly end his season on the same day the team lost Adam Ruzicka and Nick DeSimone on waivers.
In less than a week, the Flames have lost its entire fourth line.
Expect another Wrangler call-up to join the team Saturday when they host Chicago for their last game before the all-star break — a game that could easily serve as the final stake through the Flames’ playoff hopes if the lowly Blackhawks can beat Calgary for the fifth-straight time.
Lost in all of this was Johnny Gaudreau making his second visit to Calgary as a Blue Jacket, and was held scoreless while 18,000 booed him with every touch of the puck.
Oh, and Jonathan Huberdeau was hoofed from the game for boarding after plowing Jack Roslovic’s face into the boards, causing considerable bleeding.
Flames’ Huberdeau kicked out of game for boarding Blue Jackets’ Roslovic
A memorable night for so many reasons, led by Kylington’s triumphant return.
“I thought he did a really good job tonight — he was one of the bright spots for our team, for sure,” said Ryan Huska, otherwise critical of his team’s energy level.
“It was a big moment for him, for what he’s gone through.
“He’s had a tough stretch and I think people recognize the challenges probably that he would have faced, and it was nice to see the ovation he did get.”
NEW YORK – Toronto Blue Jays reliever Chad Green and Canadian slugger Tyler O’Neill of the Boston Red Sox were named finalists for the Major League Baseball Players’ Association’s American League comeback player award on Monday.
Chicago White Sox left-hander Garrett Crochet was the other nominee.
New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge, Los Angeles Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani and Kansas City Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. were named player of the year finalists.
The award winners, selected via player voting, will be named Saturday before Game 2 of the World Series.
Green, who missed most of the 2022 and ’23 seasons after undergoing Tommy John surgery, was a high-leverage option for the Blue Jays this past season and filled in at closer over the second half of the campaign.
The right-hander converted his first 16 save opportunities and finished the year with a 4-6 record, 17 saves and a 3.21 earned-run average over 53 appearances.
O’Neill, a native of Burnaby, B.C., also endured back-to-back injury-plagued seasons in ’22 and ’23.
After being traded to the Red Sox in the off-season, O’Neill set an MLB record by hitting a homer in his fifth straight Opening Day. He finished with 31 homers on the year and had an OPS of .847.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 21, 2024.
NEW YORK – Florida Panthers centre Sam Reinhart was named NHL first star of the week on Monday after leading all players with nine points over four games last week.
Reinhart had four goals, five assists and a plus-seven rating to help the Stanley Cup champions post a 3-0-1 record on the week and move into first place in the Atlantic Division.
New York Rangers left-winger Artemi Panarin took the second star and Minnesota Wild goaltenderFilip Gustavsson was the third star.
Panarin had eight points (4-4) over three games.
Gustavsson became the 15th goalie in NHL history to score a goal and had a 1.00 goals-against average and .962 save percentage over a pair of victories.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 21, 2024.
CLEVELAND (AP) — Deshaun Watson won’t finish the season as Cleveland’s starting quarterback for the second straight year.
He’s injured again, and the Browns have new problems.
Watson ruptured his right Achilles tendon in the first half of Sunday’s loss to Cincinnati, collapsing as he began to run and leading some Browns fans to cheer while the divisive QB laid on the ground writhing in pain.
The team feared Watson’s year was over and tests done Monday confirmed the rupture. The Browns said Watson will have surgery and miss the rest of the season but “a full recovery is expected.”
It’s the second significant injury in two seasons for Watson, who broke the glenoid (socket) bone in his throwing shoulder last year after just six starts.
The 29-year-old went down Sunday without being touched on a draw play late in the first half. His right leg buckled and Watson crumpled to the turf. TV replays showed his calf rippling, consistent with an Achilles injury.
He immediately put his hands on his helmet, clearly aware of the severity of an injury similar to the one Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers sustained last year.
As he was being assisted by the team’s medical staff and backup Dorian Thompson-Robinson grabbed a ball to begin warming up, there was some derisive cheers and boos from the stands in Huntington Bank Field.
Cleveland fans have been split over Watson, who has been accused of being sexually inappropriate with women.
The reaction didn’t sit well with several Watson’s teammates, including star end Myles Garrett, the NFL’s reigning Defensive Player of the Year, who was appalled by the fans’ behavior.
“We should be ashamed of ourselves as Browns and as fans to boo anyone and their downfall. To be season-altering, career-altering injury,” Garrett said. “Man’s not perfect. He doesn’t need to be. None of us are expected to be perfect. Can’t judge him for what he does off the field or on the field because I can’t throw stones for my glass house.
“Ultimately everyone’s human and they’re disappointed just like we are, but we have to be better than that as people. There’s levels to this. At the end of the day, it’s just a game and you don’t boo anybody being injured and you don’t celebrate anyone’s downfall.”
Backup quarterback Jameis Winston also admonished the uncomfortable celebration.
“I am very upset with the reaction to a man that has had the world against him for the past four years, and he put his body and life on the line for this city every single day,” he said. “The way I was raised, I will never pull on a man when he’s down, but I will be the person to lift him up.
“I know you love this game. When I first got here, I knew these were some amazing fans, but Deshaun was treated badly and now he has to overcome another obstacle. So I’m going to support him, I’m going to lift him up and I’m going to be there for him.”
The injury is yet another twist in Watson’s tumultuous time with the Browns.
Cleveland traded three first-round draft picks and five overall to Houston in 2022 to get him, with owners Dee and Jimmy Haslam approving the team giving Watson a fully guaranteed, five-year $230 million contract.
With a solid roster, the Browns were desperate to find a QB who could help them compete against the top AFC teams.
The Browns had moved on from Baker Mayfield despite drafting him No. 1 overall in 2018 and making the playoffs two seasons later.
But Watson has not played up to expectations — fans have been pushing for him to be benched this season — and Cleveland’s move to get him has been labeled an abject failure with the team still on the hook to pay him $46 million in each of the next two seasons.
Watson’s arrival in Cleveland also came amid accusations by more than two dozen women of sexual assault and harassment during massage therapy sessions while he played for the Texans. Two grand juries declined to indict him and he has settled civil lawsuits in all but one of the cases.
Watson was suspended by the NFL for his first 11 games and fined $5 million for violating the league’s personal conduct policy before he took his first snap with the Browns. The long layoff — he sat out the 2021 season in a contract dispute — led to struggles once he got on the field, and Watson made just six starts last season before hurting his shoulder.
Cleveland signed veteran Joe Flacco, who went 4-1 as a starter and led the Browns to the playoffs.
Before Watson got hurt this year, he didn’t play much better. He was one of the league’s lowest-rated passers for a Cleveland team that hasn’t scored 20 points in a game and is back in search of a franchise QB.
