標籤: consecutive

Get back on the wagon. The Buffalo Sabers know how to counter-attack.

The Sabers won 3–1 over the Boston Bruins at TD Garden in Game 3, taking a 2–1 lead in their first-round playoff series.

After the loss of Ukka Pekka-Luukkonen in Game 2, Lindy Ruff chose goaltender Alex Lyon – who was excellent. Lyon turned down 24 of 25 shots for a .960 save percentage, while the Sabers effectively controlled the game despite a scoreless first period.

Boston had its first bloody play early in the second period when Tanner Jeannott headed past Lyon at 3:26 on an assist from Charlie McAvoy to take a 1–0 lead.

However, the Sabers responded quickly. Bowen Byram tied it 1-1 at 10:58 of the second minute with a wrist shot set up by Noah Ostlund and Owen Power. Buffalo outshot Boston 8–6 in the period and carried the momentum into halftime.

The third period was that of the visitors. Alex Tuch (one of the game’s three stars) gave Buffalo its first lead at 4:03, making snap shots past Peyton Krebs and Byram for a 2–1 lead.

The Sabers played hard defensively and limited Boston’s chances, with Lyon making several key stops. Noah Ostlund—who was making his Stanley Cup playoff debut in place of the injured Josh Norris—sealed the win with an empty-netter at 18:36 off an assist from Jack Quinn, making the score 3–1.

Buffalo scored with 28 shots to Boston’s 25. Neither team converted on the power play (0-for-5 for BUF, 0-for-4 for BOS), but the Sabers were more disciplined overall and won key faceoffs (51% to 49%). The physical game began late on with several scuffles and cross-checking penalties after the whistle in the final minutes.

The Sabers and Bruins will get some rest here, next up for Game 4 on Sunday at 2:00 p.m.

James is the fully certified New Jersey Devils beat reporter for New Jersey Hockey Now on SportsNote and … More about James Nicholls

Here are the Montreal Canadiens news items, stories and content you may have missed on Saturday.

montreal canadiens news

Cole Caufield played a key role in Montreal’s 4–3 shootout victory over the New Jersey Devils, however, he did not score a goal. The elite sniper recorded two assists, helping the Habs earn their eighth consecutive win. With the win the team also reached the 100-point mark. [Canadiens Highlights: 100-Point Season Secured In Exciting Win]

While most of the attention in the race for the Calder Trophy has focused on Beckett Seneca or Matthew Schaeffer, it’s worth pointing out that Ivan Demidov is the first rookie to reach the 60-point mark.

Ivan Demidov is the first NHL rookie to reach 60 points this season pic.twitter.com/ZhEqsCpnNr

– /r/Habs (@HabsOnReddit) 5 April 2026

Bryce Pickford has every chance of scoring a goal. Well, to be more precise, he does a lot in between scoring goals at an impressive rate, but he is not that flashy.

BUZZER BEATER Bryce Pickford!!! 🚨🐅@CanadiensMTL | #GoHabsGo pic.twitter.com/5XUxXzvXi8

– Medicine Hat Tigers (@tigershockey) 5 April 2026

It was relatively surprising to see veteran Samuel Montembeault serve as Montreal’s backup on Saturday, although it should be noted that Jacob Fowler is expected to start the second leg of back-to-back games on Sunday, which explains why Montembeault dressed.

tonight’s training

tonight’s lineup#GoHabsGo pic.twitter.com/CFVEle7wRY

– Montreal Canadiens (@CanadiensMTL) 4 April 2026

It’s fair to say that many NHL stars have Montreal as their ideal backup plan. Of course, it would be better if hubs became their ideal destination, but this is a situation that still needs a little work. Thankfully, since Kent Hughes and company took over, Montreal has slowly but surely become a city that star skaters want to play in.

Anze Kopitar reveals where else he’s thinking about playing besides L.A.:

“Probably Montreal. I enjoy the city, I enjoy playing there. If I had to pick (another team), it’d probably be the Canadiens.” pic.twitter.com/3YhWQIPMi0

– /r/Habs (@HabsOnReddit) 4 April 2026

Sportsknot Network

If the New Jersey Devils had made the playoffs this season, the series against the Montreal Canadiens could have been really fun. Alas, there were no playoff chances this year, nor a win against Montreal on Saturday night. [New Jersey Devils]

The Washington Capitals have kept their playoff hopes alive for now. He scored six goals against the red-hot Buffalo Sabers en route to a 6–2 home win on Saturday. [Washington Capitals]

As Barry Trotz’s retirement approaches, the Nashville Predators’ search for a new general manager is intensifying. Now, a new rumor has surfaced – their victim is being linked to the Carolina Hurricanes. [Carolina Hurricanes]

Mark has been covering the Habs for over a decade. He previously worked for the Journal Metro, The Athletic, The… More about Mark Dumont

With their latest win over the Washington Wizards, Ben Stiller’s favorite team, the New York Knicks, have made it six wins in a row, and as the last nine of the regular season approach, they are on fire.

After losing to the Brooklyn Nets by nearly a single point, the Knicks came back strongly and defeated the Wizards by 32 points on Sunday, March 22.

Stiller was in high spirits after the game. He responded to the Knicks Beast’s post about the latest win over the X’s Earlier on Twitter, the New York bench posted six fire emojis celebrating.

🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥 https://t.co/o7Wb2eijna

– Ben Stiller (@benstiller) 23 March 2026

As usual, Stiller was live-posting throughout the game. He was very high on Karl-Anthony Towns throughout the game, leading the team with 26 points and 16 rebounds.

Knicks are flying high after crushing Wizards

On Sunday, March 22, the Knicks defeated the Wizards 145–113. Granted, the Wizards have the second-worst record in the NBA. They are 16-55 with losses and the Indiana Pacers are the only team with a worse record (15-56).

Meanwhile, the Knicks are 47-25 and still competing for the second seed in the Eastern Conference. The Boston Celtics are 47-24, and New York can still catch them. They are still five games behind the top-seeded Detroit Pistons (51-19) in the conference.

Towns was the game’s leading scorer against the Wizards. He made nine of his 13 shots in the game, and he made all seven free throws.

Jalen Brunson was also not far behind, scoring 23 points in the win. He also had four assists and one steal. Josh Hart and Mikal Bridges scored 16 and 14 points, respectively.

There are 10 games left in the 2025-26 NBA season. The Knicks will host the New Orleans Pelicans before a four-game road trip. They will play the Charlotte Hornets, Oklahoma City Thunder, Houston Texans and Memphis Grizzlies before returning home to host the Chicago Bulls on April 3.

The 2025-26 season has not been great for Phoenix Suns guard Jalen Green on the injury front. After missing a total of 21 games over the first four seasons of his career (including a total of zero for the last two campaigns), Green has missed 48 games this season due to hamstring problems. But it looks like Green is putting those injury troubles in the rearview mirror.

On Friday night, despite the Suns’ 122-115 loss to the Toronto Raptors in which he lost offensive fire in the clutch, Green made himself a peach of a ballgame. The fifth-year guard recorded a team-high 34 points on 13-25 shooting from the field (8-16 from beyond the arc) with five rebounds, four assists and one steal, and in doing so, he scored 30 points in two consecutive games for the first time this season.

Green scored 36 points in the win over the Indiana Pacers last night, and he’s looking healthy to the extent that he’s doing so despite being down two sets in a row to the Suns. This suggests that the team is not too concerned about the long-term stability of his hamstring.

His latest effort may end in defeat, but gaining a foothold late in the season helps Green at least cover for the absence of Dillon Brooks, who has been an offensive cornerstone for the Suns all season.

Suns are in the running for a spot in the Western Conference

As things stand, the Suns will be faced with the incredible task of becoming one of the best teams in the West by making it through the play-in tournament. Currently their record is 39-28, but that puts them in seventh place in the standings.

There will be no rest for these tired Suns, as their next three games will be against extremely tough opposition. On Monday, they face the Boston Celtics, followed by games against the Minnesota Timberwolves and San Antonio Spurs.

The highlight of the night for the New Jersey Devils at PPG Paints Arena was when the Pittsburgh Penguins faithful gave golden goalscorer Jack Hughes a standing ovation to solidify Team USA’s victory at the 2026 Winter Olympics.

Then again, it was penguins all night.

Fork is found in the kitchen. In other words, the Devils gave up the game’s first goal – once again – to the Penguins in the first period.

Late in the opening frame, Arseniy Gritsyuk was charged a minor penalty or fouled Penguins defenseman, Parker Wotherspoon, and the Penguins went on the power play.

About a minute into the man advantage for Pittsburgh, Kris Letang’s blast was redirected by Tommy Novak, giving the Penguins a 1–0 lead.

It was a slow first period for the Devils, who ended the period with a 9-6 shot differential deficit.

However, the second season started much better. In a similar manner to how Novak scored – albeit at power – Hughes fed Dougie Hamilton at the Penguins blueline for a one-time blast.

Paul Cotter redirected a Hamilton shot and tied the game at one.

Dan Muse and the Penguins challenged the Devils goal for goaltender interference. Still, the challenge went New Jersey’s way, which put a goal on the board and sent the Devils to the power play.

Still, the Devils failed to convert the man advantage and three additional power plays gained in the second period.

It was all Penguins in the third period as they regained the lead after quickly taking control of the game.

At 6:30 of the final frame, Ryan Shea’s rocket from the left circle hit the cross bar and bounced off Connor Clifton at the opposite point. When the puck came to him the veteran defenseman did not hesitate, wound up and scored to give the Penguins a 2–1 lead.

50 seconds later, Yegor Chinakhov caught the Devils napping. He slipped behind the Devils defense and Evgeni Malkin fed him for a half-breakaway and Chinakhov scored to put the Penguins ahead by two goals, making the game 3–1.

The Devils pulled Markstrom with less than four minutes to play and after the man advantage, Clifton had the puck taken out of play and sat for delay of game.

Blake Lizotte hit an empty net to seal the Devils’ 29th loss of the season and fifth consecutive.

Jacob Markstrom’s strong start wasted. The Swiss goaltender brought a little Olympic swag back with him. Still, they surrendered three goals on 33 shots they faced.

James is the fully certified New Jersey Devils beat reporter for New Jersey Hockey Now on SportsNote and … More about James Nicholls

Ziare Williams will miss his second consecutive game for the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday. Brooklyn ruled Williams out of the match with the Atlanta Hawks due to personal reasons.

Williams played 22 minutes during Thursday’s 112-84 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers. However, the Nets ruled him out of Friday’s 105–86 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder due to personal reasons.

Williams has played a featured role with Brooklyn’s second unit this season. He has recorded the seventh-most minutes on the team, averaging 9.5 points, 2.6 rebounds and 1.2 steals per game on .407/.313/.859 shooting splits in 39 appearances.

Ziaire Williams missing Nets vs. Hawks due to personal reasons

Ochai Agbaji has seen extended minutes in the Nets’ second unit over the last two games during Williams’ absence. The trade deadline acquisition recorded his best performance of the season on Thursday vs. the Cavs. He posted 13 points on 5-of-8 shooting from the field, three rebounds, three assists and one block and 3-of-6 from three in 28 minutes.

Nic Claxton will return from a two-game absence vs. Atlanta due to an ankle injury. The Hawks, who have lost four of their last five games, will be without Jonathan Kuminga because of a knee injury.

After three consecutive losses, the Nets have dropped to third in the draft lottery standings. They are tied in the win column and second in the loss column behind the Indiana Pacers.

After Sunday’s game against the Hawks, Brooklyn will return home for matchups with the Dallas Mavericks and San Antonio Spurs on Tuesday and Thursday, respectively.

The purple beam over Sacramento was once a symbol of victory and celebration, but it’s fair to say things have become ridiculously off-script. The Sacramento Kings suffered their 15th consecutive loss against the Orlando Magic, a 131-94 defeat that did nothing to lift the franchise’s morale.

And as a result, the official Sacramento Beam account has posted an ‘open for work’ update on the X, simply because it hasn’t been published since January 16th, when they had a win against the Washington Wizards.

Great performance in Sacramento✌️ pic.twitter.com/tsFZII75Ap

– The Beam (@SacBeam) 20 February 2026

It was the fourth consecutive win for Sacramento, their best so far this season. Beyond that, things could get even more serious, considering the next five-game road trip that also includes games against the Houston Rockets, Dallas Mavericks and Los Angeles Lakers.

Introduced during the 2022–23 season, the Sacramento Beam is a multi-laser installation mounted above Golden 1 Center that fires a purple pillar into the sky after every Kings victory. It has since developed into a civic ritual for fans, and will be lit after each Kings victory.

Sacramento has since fallen to 12–45, the worst record in the NBA, and is on pace to equal their worst Sacramento-era finish of 17–65. The skid has been marred by injuries, missing key players like Domanotas Sabonis, Keegan Murray, Zach LaVine and De’Andre Hunter.

“I’ve been here for the best and here for the worst, so I know what they both look like, and our fans deserve more, and we’ll get there. This is as painful as it gets. “The pain I felt here was something that, you know, in my opinion, can affect your life in a lot of ways. Knowing you have the best team, and you don’t get there,” Doug Christie said after the game, per Sactown Sports, effectively summing up the crisis the Kings are currently in.

Now they face the fiery San Antonio Spurs in Austin, and they need a quick turnaround to turn their fortunes around.

The New York Knicks could not unseat the Detroit Pistons in the 2025-26 NBA season.

On Thursday, the Knicks again failed in their mission to pick up a win at the expense of Detroit, as they lost 126–111 to the visiting Pistons. This was New York’s third loss against Cade Cunningham and Co. this campaign, which also means they have lost this regular season series.

Each of Detroit’s losses was a double-digit blowout. The first meeting in Detroit ended with a score of 121–90, with the Pistons defeating the Knicks 118–80 in the second meeting.

Given how the Pistons have misbehaved in New York this season, it appears that the Detroit Knicks will have their biggest nightmare in the 2025 NBA Playoffs.

But for Knicks newcomer Jose Alvarado, New York’s outlook in the postseason, if it meets the Pistons there, is not as discouraging as it seems.

“The playoffs are a completely different ballgame,” Alvarado said after the game (h/t Knicks Video). “We’re not going to sit here and say, ‘Oh, they beat us in the regular season…’ We’re not thinking like that.”

Still, it’s clear that the Pistons are a big thorn in the side for New York.

The Knicks eliminated Detroit in the first round of the 2025 NBA Playoffs, but the Pistons have since become one of the best teams not only in the East but in the entire league. At this point in the season only the defending NBA champion Oklahoma City Thunder have more wins than Detroit, improving to 41–13. The Knicks, on the other hand, fell to 35-21.

Rome Flynn is making the NBA All-Star Celebrity Game his personal playground. For the second year in a row, the multitalented actor and musician walked off the court with the hardware, proving that his 2025 performance was no fluke. Flynn led Team Giannis to a 65-58 victory over Team Anthony on Friday night, solidifying his status as the undisputed king of the star-studded exhibition.

While the celebrity game is usually known for its viral moments and questionable jump shots, Flynn brought the legitimate game to the hardwood. He was there to surround. Flynn finished the night with a game-high 17 points, showcasing a smooth offensive performance that kept the defense on its heels. Whether he was driving to the rim or hitting a timely jumper, he served as the engine that kept Team Giannis ahead in competitive back-and-forth.

back to back!

Rome Flynn has been named NBA All-Star Celebrity Game MVP for the second consecutive year.

pic.twitter.com/3j7Sg1M6UH

– ClutchPoints (@clutchpoints) 14 February 2026

Team Anthony did not go down without a fight, keeping the score within reach until the final minutes of the fourth quarter. However, the cohesion of the Giannis Antetokounmpo-led team proved to be too much to handle down the stretch. Beyond the scoring, Flynn’s defensive energy and three steals helped spark a crucial run in the second half that ultimately decided the outcome.

Repeating as MVP is a rare feat in this format, putting Flynn in an elite category of celebrity athletes who have the skill to live up to the hype. Now with two trophies under his belt, the conversation has turned to whether or not he can keep playing, whether anyone can really stop him from a three-peat. The celebrity game is Flynn’s; Everyone else is playing for second place.