Much like the team that went on that surprise run 27 years ago, the current Islanders, who are the No. 6 seed in the East, have exceeded expectations, knocking off the No. 3 seed Washington Capitals in the first round and the No. 1 seed Flyers in the second round after defeating the Florida Panthers in the Stanley Cup Qualifiers.
The Islanders play Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Final against the No. 2 seed Tampa Bay Lightning on Monday (8 p.m. ET; NBCSN, CBC, SN, TVAS) at Rogers Place in Edmonton, the hub city for the conference finals and the Stanley Cup Final.
“I actually have a feeling they’re going to win the Cup,” said Rich Pilon, a defenseman on the 1992-93 team. “It’s not necessarily the best players that win championships, it’s the best team.”
The Islanders didn’t win the Cup in 1993, but their run was memorable nonetheless following a third-place finish in the Patrick Division. Holding a 3-2 lead in their best-of-7 series against the Capitals in the first round, center Pierre Turgeon, New York’s leading scorer with 132 points (58 goals, 74 assists) during the regular season, was blindsided by Washington center Dale Hunter while celebrating a goal in the third period of Game 6 at Nassau Coliseum that gave them a 5-1 lead.
Turgeon sustained a separated shoulder from the hit. NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman suspended Hunter for the first 21 games of the 1993-94 season, the longest in League history at the time.
“At the Coliseum, the dressing rooms were about 60 yards apart,” said goalie Glenn Healy, who started all 18 playoff games for the Islanders in 1993. “We tried to get down to that locker room to inflict our sense of revenge. We didn’t quite get there; New York’s finest got in the way of that.”
The Islanders advanced in the playoffs, but they would do so without their best player.
With Turgeon out, the Islanders were faced with what seemed to be an impossible task in the second round. They were up against the two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins, who were led by Hockey Hall of Fame coach Scotty Bowman and four players who were later inducted — forwards Mario Lemieux, Ron Francis and Joe Mullen, and defenseman Larry Murphy (a fifth, forward Jaromir Jagr, will join them soon enough). They won the Presidents’ Trophy with 119 points, highlighted by an NHL-record 17-game winning streak.
“That Pittsburgh team was beyond loaded,” center Ray Ferraro said. “That was a team. Like, holy crap. If you looked at the two teams side by side on the whiteboard, you would laugh. You’d be like, ‘You mean that team on the left’s going to beat that team on the right?’ There was zero people that picked our team to beat Pittsburgh, and if anybody did, they were out to lunch.”
Al Arbour, the Hall of Fame coach of the Islanders, didn’t have a star-studded lineup. But he did have veteran leaders in goal, with Healy, and up front, with forwards Patrick Flatley, Steve Thomas and Ferraro. His defense was mostly young, sparked by rookies Darius Kasparaitis, who was 19 years old, and Vladimir Malakhov, who was 24.
So how could the Islanders possibly defeat the Penguins, who were seeking their third straight Stanley Cup championship? Arbour challenged his players prior to Game 1.
“He asked us individually, starting with Pat Flatley, ‘Can you tie one shift against Mario Lemieux? I don’t need you to score, just tie the shift,'” Healy said. “And then the next guy. … The exercise went on.”
“The hair was standing on the back of my neck. It was amazing,” Pilon said. “When he would do his pregame speech, you were almost frothing at the mouth. It was unbelievable how he could get you motivated and focused. It was something to feel and be part of.”
The Islanders trailed 3-2 in the best-of-7 series, but Thomas scored two goals and two assists in a 7-5 win in Game 6 at Nassau Coliseum.
“To my recollection, we didn’t have flights back to Pittsburgh for Game 7; they booked them the day we had to go,” Ferraro said. “We were all flying commercial. We’re all jammed in middle seats and stuff. It’s a short flight, but still.”
David Volek, a forward who scored eight goals in 56 games during the regular season and hadn’t scored in the playoffs, gave New York a 2-1 lead at 6:10 of the third period in Game 7. Forward Benoit Hogue made it 3-1 less than three minutes later, and the Islanders appeared to be on their way to the conference final, especially after Lemieux and New York defenseman Uwe Krupp took coincidental slashing penalties with 4:05 remaining.
“I remember being on the bench and going, ‘What an unbelievable trade.’ Not that we’re not going to miss [Krupp], but oh my God, one of the best players in the history of the game is not going to be able to play,” Ferraro said.
But the Penguins didn’t go away quietly. Francis made it 3-2 with 3:47 left, and forward Rick Tocchet tied it 3-3 with one minute remaining.
“It was like someone taking away your meal when you’re really hungry,” Pilon said. “You’re like, ‘Really?’ It was devastating, but I remember Al saying, ‘If you could’ve asked us at the beginning of this series that we were going to be going into overtime [in Game 7], would you not have taken it?’ He told us not to be devastated.”
Healy made three of his 42 saves in overtime, and Volek finished a 2-on-1 with Ferraro at 5:16 to complete what is still the most improbable playoff series win in Islanders history.
“The owners desperately wanted to trade Volek all year,” Healy said. “I remember standing by the bus with Al and [we] were celebrating a pretty big win. … The owners came up and they were all ecstatic we had won and Al just looked at them and said, ‘What do you think of David [bleeping] Volek now?’ That’s Al Arbour.”
The ’93 playoff run ended for the Islanders in the Wales Conference Final, where they lost to the eventual Cup winner, the Montreal Canadiens, in five games. Montreal won Games 2 and 3 in overtime.
“After we lost to Montreal, a bunch of us went on vacation together in Ireland,” Healy said. “As if we hadn’t had enough time together for the six weeks of our ride, we decided to go for a longer ride. To this day, we’re still friends. We talk all the time.”
Led by coach Barry Trotz, the current Islanders have learned to share a similar bond, one that center Jean-Gabriel Pageau called “a brotherhood” earlier this postseason. It’s a big reason why they’ve matched that run from 1993.
“They’ve got so much depth, and Barry does such a good job managing that bench and getting everybody ice time,” Pilon said. “Everybody feels part of it, and that’s why they play so hard for a guy like him and his coaching staff. Kudos to them.”
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Lamar Jackson threw for 281 yards and five touchdowns, helping the Baltimore Ravens overcome an early double-digit deficit and extend their National Football League winning streak to five games with a 41-31 victory Monday night over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who lost their top two receivers to injuries.
The two-time NFL MVP improved to 23-1 against NFC teams, the best mark by a quarterback against an opposing conference in NFL history. He’s 3-0 against the Bucs (4-3), who faded after taking a 10-0 lead with help from the 100th TD reception of Mike Evans’ career.
Evans departed with a hamstring injury after Baker Mayfield tried to connect with him in the end zone again, and late in the fourth quarter with the game out of reach, leading Bucs receiver Chris Godwin was carted off the field with a left ankle injury. ESPN declined to show replays of Godwin’s injury, which appeared to be severe.
Jackson completed 17 of 22 passes without an interception, including TD throws of nine and four yards to Mark Andrews. He also tossed scoring passes of 49 yards to Rashod Bateman, 18 yards to Justice Hill and 11 yards to Derrick Henry, who rushed for 169 yards on 15 carries. Bateman had four catches for 121 yards.
The Ravens (5-2) rebounded from a slow start on defence, with cornerback Marlon Humphrey turning the game around with a pair of second-quarter interceptions — one of them in the Baltimore end zone. Jackson led a four-play, 80-yard TD drive after the first pick, and the second interception set up Justin Tucker’s 28-yard field goal for a 17-10 halftime lead.
Elsewhere in the NFL:
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CARDINALS 17 CHARGERS 15
GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Kyler Murray ran for a 44-yard touchdown and led the Cardinals on a drive that set up Chad Ryland’s 32-yard field goal as time expired, and Arizona rallied for a win over Los Angeles.
Cameron Dicker kicked his fifth field goal of the night — this one from 40 yards — to give the Chargers a 15-14 lead with 1:54 left. But the Cardinals (3-4) quickly moved into field goal range, aided by an unnecessary roughness call on Cam Hart that cost Los Angeles (3-3) 15 yards.
Arizona followed that with a bruising 33-yard run by James Conner, who finished with 101 yards on the ground. That eventually set up Ryland’s short field goal and a Cardinals celebration.
It was a frustrating night for the Chargers’ offence, which gained 395 yards but couldn’t find the end zone. Justin Herbert completed 27 of 39 passes for 349 yards.
Dicker booted field goals of 59, 50, 28, 47 and 40 yards, the first of which tied a franchise record for distance.
Murray ran for a spectacular touchdown early in the fourth quarter, rolling to his left before turning on the jets, beating safety Junior Colston to the sideline and then coasting into the end zone for a 14-9 lead.
It was Murray’s second long touchdown run in three weeks after he scored on a 50-yard sprint against San Francisco. It was also Murray’s 20th career game with a touchdown pass and run.
Murray completed 14 of 26 passes for 145 yards, one touchdown and one interception.
VANCOUVER – The Vancouver Whitecaps have been here before — literally and figuratively.
With the season hanging in the balance, the ‘Caps were dealt a blow last week when the club learned it wouldn’t be able to play a post-season wild-card game in its home stadium, B.C. Place, due to a scheduling conflict.
The Whitecaps ceded home field advantage to their regional rival, the Portland Timbers. The two clubs will battle for the final playoff spot in Major League Soccer’s Western Conference in Oregon on Wednesday.
The winner will face No. 1-seed Los Angeles FC in a best-of-three first-round series, starting Sunday.
An unforeseen hurdle like a change of venues is nothing new for the ‘Caps, said defender Ranko Veselinovic, who was part of the team that was forced to relocate first to Portland, then Utah during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“It feels that always something happens for us, but it is what it is. So far, we’ve managed to always find solutions for those situations,” said the Serbian centre back. “But I hope this team can find it one more time, because we need it this time. And it will be a really nice feeling in those circumstances to go in, win and go face L.A. in the next round.”
Vancouver (13-13-8) heads into the post-season winless in its last seven MLS games and with losses in four straight after dropping a 2-1 road decision to Real Salt Lake on Saturday.
The skid followed a run that saw the club go 4-1-3 across all competitions between late August and late September.
There’s just one way to return to that level, said Whitecaps head coach Vanni Sartini.
“The work is the only way to do it. Try to put the work in and try to put the team in a way that they’re going to regain the form and the way that they were in the past,” he said.
Despite the final score, Sartini has seen positives in the way his team played in its two most recent losses.
“I think already we turned the corner,” he said. “And we start from there to build and build and build.”
Facing challenges together can help a team build, whether it’s a winless skid or an unexpected hurdle, said Vancouver’s captain Ryan Gauld.
“When you’re going through adversity, that’s when people start to raise their voice a little bit. You get good when the problems arise, you get a lot of people coming together to make sure we get out of it,” said the Scottish attacking midfielder.
“And we’ve had a tough time the last few games, but everyone’s aware of the fact that we’re a much better team than we’ve shown, and we need to find a way to get back to doing what we’re good at.”
The ‘Caps face a familiar foe in the Timbers (12-11-11).
The two sides have already met three times this season, with each coming out of the series with a win, a loss and a draw.
Portland has also struggled in recent weeks and are winless in their last five MLS outings (0-1-4).
The Timbers boast one of the league’s top offensive units, though, with threats such as Evander. The Brazilian midfielder notched 15 goals and 19 assists during the regular season.
To earn a win on Wednesday, the Whitecaps must be solid defensively, Gauld said.
“They must be one of the best attacks in the league. They have a lot of good players, and they can hurt you if you switch off,” he said. “So just being concentrated from the first whistle, and just being hard to beat, being stuffy. Just being on it for the full 90 minutes.”
A victory in the wild-card match would guarantee Vancouver at least one home playoff game, a factor that Sartini said would be a big reward for his group.
The entire team relished the experience of playing post-season soccer in front of more than 30,000 fans last year, the coach said, and the desire to repeat the feat is high as the club heads to Portland.
“Everyone is happy to be in the playoffs. So we don’t have to be moody to be in the playoff. And we go in there, we’re play one of our rivals. So it’s gonna be a nice game to show up and to play our best game possible.”
VANCOUVER WHITECAPS (13-13-8) AT PORTLAND TIMBERS (12-11-11)
Wednesday, Providence Park
HISTORY BOOKS: This will mark the seventh all-time post-season meeting between the Timbers and ‘Caps, dating back to 1975. The last time the two clubs squared off in a playoff game was during the Western Conference semifinal in 2015. Portland won the two-game aggregate series and went on to hoist the MLS Cup.
ROAD WARRIORS: The ‘Caps boasted a 7-6-4 record on the road during regular-season play — better than the 6-7-4 showing they posted at B.C. Place.
POST-SEASON PARTY: Wednesday will mark the first time the Timbers have hosted a post-season game since 2021.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 22, 2024.
GLASGOW, Scotland (AP) — Scotland conceived rugby sevens in the 1880s yet it will not feature in the scaled-back 2026 Commonwealth Games hosted by Glasgow.
Other sports that have also been dropped include field hockey, triathlon, badminton, Twenty20 cricket, squash, and diving.
The Games will have a 10-sport program in four venues. Athletics and swimming are compulsory while there will also be track cycling, gymnastics, netball, weightlifting, boxing, judo, bowls and 3×3 basketball.
There will also be integrated para events in six of those sports: Athletics, swimming, track cycling, weightlifting, bowls and basketball.
The Games will take place from July 23-Aug. 2 after Glasgow stepped in when the Australian state of Victoria withdrew last year because of rising costs.
It was not easy to decide which sports to include, Commonwealth Games Scotland chairman Ian Reid told the BBC on Tuesday.
“I think everybody recognises that these events need to be more affordable, lighter and we would have loved to have all of our sports and all of our athletes competing but unfortunately it’s just not deliverable or affordable for this time frame,” Reid said.
Athletes and support staff will be housed in hotels. Around 3,000 athletes are expected to compete from up to 74 Commonwealth nations and territories representing a combined total of 2.5 billion people, a third of the world’s entire population.
More than 500,000 tickets made available for spectators.
The Commonwealth Games Federation chief executive Katie Sadleir said: “The 2026 Games will be a bridge to the Commonwealth Games of tomorrow, an exciting first step in our journey to reset and redefine the Games as a truly collaborative, flexible and sustainable model for the future that minimises costs, reduces the environmental footprint, and enhances social impact. In doing so, increasing the scope of countries capable of hosting.”
Glasgow hosted the event in 2014 at a cost of more than 540 million pounds.
