August 26, 2020 3:54 am
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) – The NHL has fined Columbus Blue Jackets coach John Tortorella $25,000 for his conduct during a media session after his team was eliminated from the playoffs. Following the Tampa Bay Lightning’s Game 5 victory over the Blue Jackets, Tortorella ended his video news conference after two questions and walked away.
August 25, 2020 3:47 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – Pittsburgh Steelers safety Minkah Fitzpatrick is just fine if the team sticks to the plan that made him an All-Pro last season. Fitzpatrick’s arrival in a trade last September proved to be the spark that helped the Steelers become one of the NFL’s most dominant defenses. Fitzpatrick’s five interceptions tied for the team lead and his two touchdowns helped keep the Steelers in playoff contention until late in the season. The Steelers say Fitzpatrick’s versatility gives them flexibility on defense, but coach Mike Tomlin added they plan to keep Fitzpatrick in his role as the center fielder in the secondary.
August 25, 2020 3:50 am
UNDATED (AP) – The New York Islanders are the lowest seed remaining in the Stanley Cup playoffs, but they were good enough to open their second-round series with a win against the No. 1 Philadelphia Flyers. Semyon Varlamov stopped 29 shots and the Islanders opened their second-round series with a 4-0 win over the Flyers. Varlamov has posted consecutive playoff shutouts after failing to record one since 2011. He is the first Islander to record back-to-back shutouts. Andy Greene opened the scoring at the 6:06 mark, his first playoff goal in a decade. It remained 1-0 until Jean-Gabriel Pageau and Anders Lee scored in the first nine minutes of the third. Devon Toews added an empty-netter shortly after Carter Hart was replaced by an extra attacker with about eight minutes left. Meanwhile, the Dallas Stars made it two straight wins over the Avalanche by rallying for a 4-2 victory. Dallas trailed 2-0 until Joe Pavelski and Radek Faksa scored power-play goals 43 seconds apart midway through the second period. Alexander Radulov notched the tiebreaking goal about five minutes later after contributing two goals and an assist in Game 1 on Sunday.
Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen each had a power-play goal and an assist for Colorado. Stars goaltender Anton Khudobin was otherwise perfect while the Avs outshot Dallas, 41-27.
August 25, 2020 3:51 am
UNDATED (AP) – The New York Mets will resume play with a doubleheader against the Marlins on Tuesday. The Mets are able to resume their schedule after no additional members tested positive for COVID-19 since the team learned of two infections that caused four games to be postponed last week. The Mets will make up their weekend Subway Series against the crosstown Yankees with doubleheaders on Friday and Sunday at Yankee Stadium and a single game on Sept. 3 at Citi Field.
August 24, 2020 3:56 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – Slumping Gregory Polanco’s bat showed signs of life for a second straight day as his two-run home run in the eighth inning lifted the Pittsburgh Pirates to a 5-4 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers and a three-game series sweep. Polanco connected off David Phelps for his fourth homer of the season and finished 2 for 3 with a walk. It was Polanco’s second two-hit game in as many days, lifting his batting average from .085 to .151. The Pirates nearly doubled their season win total in one weekend. They entered the series with a 4-17 record, worst in the major leagues.
August 24, 2020 4:01 am
UNDATED (AP) – The NFL has asked a New Jersey lab to investigate a new batch of COVID-19 test results amid reports from several teams of false positives. The league didn’t identify which teams got positive results, or how many there were. Among teams reporting false positives, the Minnesota Vikings said they had 12, the New York Jets 10 and the Chicago Bears nine. Other teams that were affected are the Buffalo Bills, Pittsburgh Steelers, Philadelphia Eagles and Cleveland Browns.
August 24, 2020 4:00 am
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) – Takuma Sato snatched a second Indianapolis 500 victory as the Japanese racer held off Scott Dixon and ultimately won under caution. IndyCar officials declined to throw a red flag after a violent crash by Spencer Pigot with just a handful of laps remaining. Pigot needed medical attention on the track, the crash scene was a debris field and there was no way the race could resume without a stoppage. Dixon dominated the race and asked on his radio if IndyCar was going to give the drivers a final shootout to the checkered flag, NASCAR style. But the five-time Indy-Car champion had to settle for second after Sato led him across the finish line under yellow.
August 24, 2020 3:59 am
UNDATED (AP) – The Boston Bruins have opened the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs by defeating the team that took the No. 1 seed from them in the round-robin tournament.
Brad Marchand scored the eventual game-winning goal and had an assist while the Bruins were building a 3-0 lead in a 3-2 win over the Lightning. Marchand tallied 1:17 in the third period and set up Charlie Coyle late in the first. David Pastrnak (PAHS’-tur-nahk) had a power-play goal and Jaroslav Halak stopped 35 shots for Boston. Halak blanked Tampa Bay until Victor Hedman scored twice over the 11 minutes. Meanwhile, the Golden Knights are 8-1 in the Edmonton bubble after cruising to a Game 1 victory in the second round. Reilly Smith, Mark Stone and Alex Tuch each had a goal and an assist to support Robin Lehner (LEH’-nur) in the Knights’ 5-0 shutout of the Canucks. Vegas took the lead on Jonathan Marchessault’s goal midway through the first period. That was enough offense for Lehner, who turned back 26 shots in his first shutout in 17 postseason games. Vancouver netminder Jacob Markstrom was pulled midway through the third period after allowing five goals on 34 shots.
August 24, 2020 3:57 am
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. (AP) – The Toronto Raptors and Boston Celtics will tangle in the second round of the NBA playoffs after completing four-game sweeps. The Raptors put an emphatic stamp on their sweep by blasting the Nets, 150-122. The Raptors had two players score at least 20 points off the bench, led by 29 from Norman Powell. Serge Ibaka added 27 points on 12 of 14 shooting and grabbed 15 rebounds. Toronto set an all-time NBA record with 100 bench points. Pascal Siakam finished with 20 points and 10 boards as the lone Toronto starter with more than 10 points.
The Raptors are 11-1 in the bubble, with the lone loss coming against Boston. The Celtics took advantage of an injury and defeating the 76ers, 110-106. The game changed when Tobias Harris crashed to the floor at the 2:40 mark of the third quarter. Without Harris, Boston went on a 12-0 run and eventually led 96-79 in the opening minutes of the fourth. Kemba Walker poured in 32 points in his first NBA series-clinching win.
August 23, 2020 7:51 am
Mike Milbury is stepping away from broadcasting the rest of the NHL playoffs after his on-air comment that there were no women in the league’s quarantined bubble to disrupt concentration drew widespread criticism. The former player, coach and general manager released a statement through NBC Sports on Saturday, saying: “I do not want my presence to interfere with the athletes as they try to win the greatest trophy in sports.” An NBC Sports spokesman confirmed it was Milbury’s decision to leave and that the analyst remains employed by the network. During a game Thursday night between the New York Islanders and Washington Capitals, broadcasters were discussing the environment inside the bubbles in Toronto and Edmonton, Alberta. After Brian Boucher talked about it being “the perfect place” for players who enjoy playing hockey and being with their teammates for long periods of time, Milbury responded there are “not even any women here to disrupt your concentration.” The league said it condemned the “insensitive and insulting” comment that “did not reflect the NHL’s values and commitment to making our game inclusive and welcoming to all. NBC Sports said it was disappointed and addressed the situation with Milbury. He apologized by saying: “It was not my intention to disrespect anyone. I was trying to be irreverent and took it a step too far. It was a regrettable mistake that I take seriously.”
