Senators earn point, but fall to Penguins in shootout

The Senators have to hope they don’t miss the playoffs by a point. In tonight’s overtime, they had one great chance after another, but couldn’t find a way to beat Stuart Skinner. They then led by one goal after the first period in the shootout, but the next two Penguins shooters scored as Stützle and Pinto both missed to end the game 4–3 for the Penguins. Let’s get into the details.

Ullmark shines through Senators’ defensive struggles

This is because the Senators will have a tough time without guys like Sanderson, Chabot and Jensen in their lineup. Tonight, he gave up 38 shots, the most he has given up all season. The second period was particularly difficult, with the Sens falling 16–6. That period ended with Ullmark making some big saves to keep the game tied. He kept the Sens in this game with several great saves, including a breakaway toe save in overtime.

It’s clear that Travis Green doesn’t trust Donovan right now. He played just 9:22 tonight. Yakemchuk was used a good amount tonight, playing 17:42 minutes and once again showing himself to be a threat offensively. Nonetheless, the quartet of Kleven, Zub, Spence and Matinpalo have worked extensively. Kleven, in particular, has seen his workload increase dramatically. He played 27 minutes tonight after playing a career-high 28:11 games in the previous game. With the news that Thomas Chabot is out for the next 4-8 weeks with his arm injury, Jake Sanderson may not be back soon.

Batherson scored twice again

From a goal total perspective, here are Batherson’s last 14 games:

  • 2, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 2, 0, 2, 0, 0, 0, 2, 2

He doesn’t just score one goal in a game! His two goals tonight give him 29 points on the season, a new career high. He will need five points in the final 10 games to equal his career-high of 68 points last season.

additional comments

I’ve seen Eric Carlson put on a show like Tonight many times. However, it’s not as much fun when it’s against the Senators. Karlsson is the main reason the Penguins remained in the playoffs last month. He has scored 21 points in the month of March. Only Nikita Kucherov has more than 25. Nice to see Brady Tkachuk deliver some big hits tonight. He finished the game with six hits overall, equaling his season high. After a brutal stretch in which the Senators played six games in nine days, including two back-to-back situations, the Senators finally got some rest. Like. He will be off for two days before playing in Tampa Bay against the Lightning on Saturday.

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Danny was born and raised in Ottawa and still lives in that city. He has followed… more about Danny McCloskey

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Miami Dolphins earn high praise for rewarding free agency signing

It’s a whole new environment in South Beach following the departure of Miami Dolphins general manager Chris Grier and head coach Mike McDaniel. The new system, led by GM John-Eric Sullivan and head coach Jeff Hafley, has wasted no time in making its mark on this franchise.

It all started with trimming Tua Tagovailoa from the roster, even though it meant a record-setting $99 million dead cap charge for the 2026 NFL league year. Subsequent moves have been equally notable, with the Dolphins releasing a pair of Pro Bowl players in Tyreek Hill and Bradley Chubb. They’ve also traded a pair of Pro Bowlers, sending Minkah Fitzpatrick to the Jets for a lottery scratch-off, and getting top value for Jaylen Waddle.

Now, it’s time to rebuild this thing from the ground up. One of the most challenging aspects after moving on from a franchise QB in Tagovailoa was how the Dolphins would find their next solution under center. It didn’t take much time.

The Dolphins signed one of the top free agent quarterbacks available, signing Malik Willis to a three-year, $67.5 million contract with $45 million guaranteed. This decision is sure to be criticized by football critics across the industry. Still, some people liked Miami’s move.

Count out ESPN’s Seth Walder as an NFL analyst who thinks the Dolphins made one of the best signings in free agency this offseason. For a Dolphins team that had no clear path forward at QB, Walder believes Miami got exactly what they needed by taking a chance on the upside that Willis represents.

“It’s very hard to find a franchise quarterback in free agency, and I’m not saying Willis is that way, or even likely to be. And signing Willis doesn’t even cost that much. At $22.5 million per year, the contract is a bargain considering what Willis could become. But even more than most deals, the most important part of this contract is the $45 million that is fully guaranteed upon signing. Because if Willis fails That’s all Miami will have to pay. And if he’s successful, he’ll need to sign a new contract immediately.”

ESPN’s Seth Walder on Malik Willis

Certainly, there are obvious potential drawbacks with a quarterback who has made just six starts since arriving as a third-round pick in the 2022 NFL Draft. Willis is far from a perfect product. Yet the Dolphins, who have two key decision-makers at the helm who were with Willis in Green Bay, are confident in the 26-year-old dual-threat QB’s development into a star in South Beach.

RELATED: Teams keep trying to trade for another Miami Dolphins Pro Bowler

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Dedicated NFL copywriter/editor. My work has been found on SportsNut, Sports Illustrated, Sporting News, MSN, Yahoo, and Minnesota Sports… More about Andrew Buller-Russ

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Kenny Atkinson becomes third Cleveland coach to earn distinguished honor

The NBA on Tuesday officially named Cleveland Cavaliers head coach Kenny Atkinson the Eastern Conference Coach of the Month for February, marking the third time in his career that he has won the award and the first time he has earned the honor this season. Atkinson is only the third coach in Cavs franchise history to accomplish the feat, joining Mike Brown and the late, great Lenny Wilkens.

Cleveland went 8-3 last month with a league-leading scoring average of 120.9 points per game and the top field-goal percentage (49.8%). He also averaged the third-most assists per contest (28.9).

This coincided with the incredible dominance of Jarrett Allen and the trade deadline acquisitions of James Harden, Keon Ellis and Dennis Schroder.

“Bringing in James has given us new confidence, if that means anything,” Atkinson said. “We understand we’re a better team and that feeling, that confidence, for some strange reason forces you to play more and compete harder and compete harder defensively, and I felt like we were losing that edge, that confidence. So I think we’re getting that back.”

Three of the team’s four lowest opponent-scoring totals were recorded in February against the New York Knicks (94) and Los Angeles Clippers (91), and the Wine and Gold held the Brooklyn Nets to a season-low 84 points at Rocket Arena.

Offensively, Cleveland scored at least 130 points three times last month, which tied for second in the East. Its average margin of victory was 10.9 points, which ranked third in the conference. Additionally, from February 1–20, the Cavs remained undefeated and had five consecutive road wins, despite the interruption of the All-Star break.

Atkinson won the NBA Coach of the Month award twice last year, with recognition for October/November 2024 and December 2024. To catch Brown’s leading total of five with the Cavs, he will have to win it twice more.

San Antonio Spurs head coach Mitch Johnson won the award for representing the Western Conference.

The Cavs have already had a solid start to March despite nagging injuries throughout the campaign. They have earned the next four days off before welcoming the Boston Celtics to town on Sunday afternoon.


#Kenny #Atkinson #Cleveland #coach #earn #distinguished #honor

Golden Knights earn emphatic win in Panarin’s Kings debut

When the Vegas Golden Knights took on the Los Angeles Kings at Crypto.com Arena on Wednesday night, they did so without five key regular players – Jack Eichel, Mitch Marner, Mark Stone, Noah Hanifin and Shea Theodore. If you think this would be a recipe for disaster, you would be partially right.

“[We knew] “We needed everybody to step up and play a good, hard game,” Colton Sissons said after the 6–4 win.

And that’s exactly what happened.

The Golden Knights entered the third period trailing the Kings 2–1, but scored three goals in 4:14. Despite missing the salary cap total of $46,275,000, the Golden Knights managed to hold off a defensively strong division rival by six.

What changed in the third period?

“I’m not quite sure,” Sissons admitted after the game. “We obviously made some attacks, and we were able to capitalize on our opportunities… Things can change quickly in this game, especially after such a long hiatus.”

The Golden Knights broke the ice at 10:59 of the first period. Reilly Smith made a great play on a 2-on-1 with Tanner Lazinski and Pavel Dorofeyev near the wall. Lazinski’s shot went wide, but the puck took an awkward jump off the end board and Dorofeyev slammed it home.

The Kings responded on the first power play at 14:31. Artemi Panarin sent a centering pass to Quinton Byfield in the slot, who put it past Adin Hill.

The Kings took the lead at 14:44 of the second period. Kaidan Korczak turned the puck over after driving into the offensive zone, and Adrian Kempe tipped it to Artemi Panarin the other way. Panarin received a cross-ice pass past Anze Kopitar; Kopitar sent a touch-pass to running back Kempe, who finished the game.

In the third period, everything changed. Both teams got their looks, but the Golden Knights converted more of them.

The Golden Knights tied it at 8:07 of the third period. Adin Hill sent a stretch pass to Brayden Bowman, who made a play along the wall to get the puck to Colton Sissons. Sissons entered the field, played catch with Bowman and dodged Anton Forsberg.

The Golden Knights took the lead at 11:16 of the third minute. Colton Sissons drove into the zone, but was pushed off the puck by Joel Armia. Brandon Saad reached him first, turned back and fired a shot. Mikey Anderson got in the way, but Saad blocked the rebound and beat Anton Forsberg from distance.

Just 1:05 later, the Golden Knights doubled their lead. Reilly Smith went coast-to-coast; After moving into the offensive zone, he dodged Brandt Clark and Joel Edmundson, protected the puck and covered the backhand.

The Kings made it a one-goal game at 13:26 of the third minute. Andrei Kuzmenko took a hit into the back of the net to tie the game and Quinton Byfield scored his second goal of the night.

The Golden Knights restored their two-goal lead on the power play at 15:59 of the third, after Jeremy Lauzon drew a penalty. Tanner Lazinski found Pavel Dorofeyev back-door for his second goal of the game.

The Kings pulled Anton Forsberg for an extra attacker with 3:39 remaining in regulation, and it paid off. Adrian Kempe set up Brandt Clark for a one-timer, and the defenseman scored from the point.

After once again trailing by only one goal, the Kings again pulled Forsberg for an extra attacker. However, this time, they could not make the change. Tomas Hertl forced a turnover, and Ivan Barbashev hit the empty net.

Despite missing five of their most important offensive players, the Golden Knights rallied for another third period comeback and an all-important regulation victory over a division rival.

“That’s what good teams do,” Pavel Dorofeyev said after the game. “No matter what, they embrace each other. Maybe we looked a little different on paper tonight, but we’re still the Golden Knights.”

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Hannah Kirkel is a beat writer who covers the Vegas Golden Knights for Vegas Hockey Now on SportsNote. She studied more about Hannah Kirkel

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