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NHL Morning Skate – April 2, 2023

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NHL Morning Skate – April 2, 2023

* Leon Draisaitl tallied three times three different ways to reach the 50-goal mark for the third time in his NHL career and help the Oilers clinch a berth in the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

* Andrei Vasilevskiy and the Lightning also clinched a postseason berth and will officially face the Maple Leafs in the First Round for the second time in as many years.
 

* Carter Verhaeghe had a career-high four goals to match a single-game franchise record and power the Panthers into a playoff spot.

* Draisaitl and Verhaeghe were two of five players with a hat trick Saturday (also David Pastrnak, Alex Tuch & Noah Gregor). It marked the sixth day in NHL history to feature five hat tricks, following Jan. 18, 1984 (7), Dec. 22, 1917 (6), March 18, 1989 (5), Jan. 18, 1922 (5) and Jan. 10, 1920 (5).

OILERS BECOME SECOND WESTERN CONFERENCE CLUB TO CLINCH POSTSEASON BERTH
Leon Draisaitl (3-0—3) and Connor McDavid (1-1—2) reached 50 goals and 146 points on the season, respectively, as the Oilers (45-23-9, 99 points) blanked the Ducks to clinch a berth in the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
 


* Draisaitl (50-70—120 in 75 GP) reached the 50-goal mark for the third time in his career (also 2021-22 & 2018-19) and became the fifth different player in NHL history to score 30 power-play goals in a season, while McDavid (62-84—146 in 77 GP) moved within four of becoming the League’s sixth different skater with a 150-point campaign. Click here to read some playoff #NHLStats about Edmonton, including several involving the Oilers’ dynamic duo.
 


LIGHTNING LOCK UP SIXTH STRAIGHT PLAYOFF BERTH, WILL FACE TORONTO IN ROUND 1
Andrei Vasilevskiy made 38 saves and Brayden Point (48-41—89 in 77 GP) pocketed 1-2—3 to move within two of his first career 50-goal NHL season as the Lightning (45-26-6, 96 points) blanked the Islanders to clinch a berth in the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
 


* Vasilevskiy has seven shutouts during the postseason including six in series-clinching fashion, placing him one ahead of Clint Benedict and Chris Osgood (both w/ 5) for the most in NHL history. Click here to read more #NHLStats about Tampa Bay.

* The Lightning locking up a berth in the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs also confirmed their First Round opponent with once again be the Maple Leafs (45-20-10, 100 points), who blanked the Senators to maintain their four-point edge on Tampa Bay. Click here for a few #NHLStats on their matchup.
 


FOUR-GOAL FRENZY BY VERHAEGHE VAULTS PANTHERS INTO PLAYOFF SPOT
Carter Verhaeghe scored four of Florida’s seven goals en route to matching a franchise record for most in game and helping the Panthers (39-31-7, 85 points) leapfrog the Penguins (37-29-10, 84 points) – who lost to the Bruins in regulation – for the second Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference. Pittsburgh (76 GP) holds one game in hand on Florida (77 GP).

* Verhaeghe (40-30—70 in 76 GP), who joined Pavel Bure (59 in 2000-01 & 58 in 1999-00) as just the second player in franchise history with a 40-goal campaign, did so thanks in part to notching three in a span of 9:05. It marked the third-fastest hat trick in Panthers history behind Noel Acciari (3:59 on Dec. 20, 2019) and Steve Reinprecht (5:11 on Oct. 30, 2009).


* Matthew Tkachuk assisted on the game-opening goal and boosted his 2022-23 totals to 38-64—102 (74 GP). He surpassed Sidney Crosby (63 in 2005-06 w/ PIT) and Artemi Panarin (63 in 2019-20 w/ NYR) for the most helpers by an active player in their first season with a franchise (NHL debut or otherwise).
 


SABRES, PREDATORS STILL WITHIN STRIKING DISTANCE OF PLAYOFF SPOT
Alex Tuch (3-0—3) and Luke Evangelista (1-2—3) propelled the Sabres (37-31-7, 81 points) and Predators (38-29-8, 84 points) to crucial victories in their respective Wild Card races. Buffalo sits four points from the second Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference, while Nashville is three points out in the Western Conference.

* Tuchnetted his second hat trick of the season to help his hometown Sabres keep their playoff hopes alive. Buffalo (75 GP), with fewer games played than both teams in the Eastern Conference Wild Card race (NYI: 87 points in 77 GP & FLA: 85 points in 77 GP), now travels to Florida for a pivotal contest on April 4. Tuchjoined Tage Thompson (4x) as the second Sabres player with multiple hat tricks in 2022-23.
 


* Evangelista put up a three-point performance and Juuse Saros made 21 saves to earn his 30th win of the season as the Predators defeated the Blues and moved within three points the idle Jets (42-31-3, 87 points), who hold the Western Conference’s final Wild Card spot, with one game in hand. Evangelista is the fourth rookie in franchise history to record multiple outings with three-plus points in the same season, following Craig Smith (4x in 2011-12), Filip Forsberg (3x in 2014-15) and Philip Tomasino (2x in 2021-22).

POINT TOTALS REACHING TRIPLE DIGITS FEATURED IN #NHLSTATS: LIVE UPDATES
Saturday’s edition of #NHLStats: Live Updates featured more notes from the 13-game slate, including one player and two teams reaching the 100-point mark:

* David Pastrnak (56-46—102 in 76 GP) tallied twice to eclipse the 100-point mark and completed the hat trick via a go-ahead goal with 2:26 remaining in regulation as the League-leading Bruins (59-12-5, 123 points) established a single-season franchise record for standings points. Pastrnak (CZE) became the fifth player to reach a triple-digit point total in 2022-23, joining Connor McDavid (CAN), Leon Draisaitl (DEU), Nikita Kucherov (RUS) and Matthew Tkachuk (USA) – it marked the first season in NHL history where each of the first five 100-point scorers had a different nationality.
 


* Ilya Samsonov (31 saves) recorded his fourth shutout of 2022-23 to propel the Maple Leafs (45-20-10, 100 points) to the 100-point mark in 75 games – the second-fastest pace in franchise history behind only 2021-22 (72 GP). Samsonov’s four shutouts trail only Harry Lumley (10 in 1952-53), Lorne Chabot (10 in 1928-29), Ed Belfour (7 in 2002-03) and Paul Bibeault (5 in 1943-44) for the most by a goaltender in their first season with Toronto.
 


* Zach Whitecloud’s winner was one of four goals scored by the Golden Knights (47-22-7, 101 points) en route to recording their second 100-point campaign. Vegas achieved its first during its inaugural season (51-24-7, 109 points in 2017-18), which also happened to be the year the Golden Knights made their historic run to the Stanley Cup Final.
 

LEARN ABOUT DOWD’S CROWD ON WORLD AUTISM AWARENESS DAY

On World Autism Awareness Day, we are highlighting the work Capitals forward Nic Dowd and his wife, Paige, are doing to help children with sensory needs – including Autism – enjoy NHL games in person not only in Washington but at other arenas across the League.

QUICK CLICKS


* Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, Clayton Keller named NHL ‘Three Stars’ for March
* Stuart Skinner named NHL ‘Rookie of the Month’ for March
* Patrik Laine donates $52,000 and counting to combat homelessness in Columbus
* Predators wear T-shirts, jersey patches to support shooting victims
* West Lorne, Ontario wins coveted title of Kraft Hockeyville 2023

NINE-GAME SUNDAY OPENS WITH DOUBLEHEADER MATINEE
A nine-game Sunday features a matinee doubleheader broadcast on TNT, SN360 and TVA Sports as the Rangers (44-21-11, 99 points) visit the Capitals (34-33-9, 77 points) and the Blues (35-35-6, 76 points) host the Bruins (59-12-5, 123 points). Additionally, Kris Letang will skate in his 1,000th career game when the Penguins (37-29-10, 84 points) take on the state-rival Flyers (29-33-13, 71 points) at PPG Paints Arena.
 


* Letang (154-532—686 in 999 GP) is set to become the third player in Penguins history to skate in 1,000 games with the club – he will join longtime teammates Sidney Crosby (1,184 GP) and Evgeni Malkin (1,057 GP). Letang, Crosby and Malkin can become the second trio to all play together as teammates after each has skated in 1,000 or more games for the same franchise, following the Kings combination of Dustin Brown, Anze Kopitar and Drew Doughty. Of note, while Brent Seabrook was still with the Blackhawks at the time of Patrick Kane’s 1,000th game in 2020-21, the trio of Kane-Seabrook-Duncan Keith never played together when each had 1,000-plus outings as Seabrook’s final NHL contest was in 2019-20.


* Letang – who will become the 10th active defenseman in the NHL to hit 1,000 games – has taken a long and winding journey to reach the milestone. A recent article on NHL.com highlighted the veteran blueliner’s accomplishments and the adversity he has faced along the way ahead of the contest.
 

McDavid, Draisaitl and Keller Named NHL ‘Three Stars’ for March

NHL Editor
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McDavid, Draisaitl and Keller Named NHL ‘Three Stars’ for March

NEW YORK – Edmonton Oilers teammates Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl and Arizona Coyotes right wing Clayton Keller have been named the NHL’s “Three Stars” for the month of March.

FIRST STAR – CONNOR McDAVID, C, EDMONTON OILERS

McDavid, the League’s “First Star” for the second straight month and third time overall in 2022-23 (also October), topped the NHL with 11-18—29 in 15 contests to lift the Oilers (44-23-9, 97 points) into second place in the Pacific Division on the strength of a League-best 12-2-1 March, setting and matching franchise records for wins and points in a calendar month, respectively. McDavid, who also ranked among the top March performers in power-play points (t-1st; 13), assists (2nd; 18), power-play assists (t‑2nd; 9), goals (t-3rd; 11) and power-play goals (t-4th; 4), registered 10 multi-point performances while finding the scoresheet in 14 of his 15 outings. That included a 10-game point streak to close the month (March 11-30: 7-13—20), his unprecedented fifth double-digit run of the season. Among his March achievements, McDavid became the 22nd player in NHL history (and fastest since 1995-96) to reach the 60-goal milestone (72 GP), the 10th player (and first since 1995-96) to accumulate 140 points in a season, and the seventh player (and first since 1995-96) to compile both 60 goals and 80 assists within a single campaign. The 26-year-old McDavid, who capped the month by becoming the 11th-youngest player in League history to reach the 300-goal milestone, paces the NHL in goals (61), assists (83) and points (144), as well as power-play assists (46), power-play points (67) and game-winning goals (t-10), through 76 total games in 2022-23. He is seeking to become the first player since Wayne Gretzky in 1986-87 to outright lead the League in goals, assists and points in a single season.

SECOND STAR – LEON DRAISAITL, C, EDMONTON OILERS

Draisaitl ranked second in the NHL with 11-17—28 in 15 appearances as he and McDavid finished as the top two scorers in a calendar month for the third time (also January 2021 and May 2021). Draisaitl, who also hit the 300-goal milestone (March 27 at ARI), placed among the March leaders in power-play goals (1st; 6), power-play points (t-1st; 13), goals (t-3rd; 11), assists (t-3rd; 17) and power-play assists (t-5th; 7). He collected points in all but one of his 15 March outings, recording his seventh career hat trick (March 4 at WPG), producing nine multi-point performances (including six straight from March 18-28: 3-12—15) and finishing the month on an 11-game point streak (March 9-30: 6-15—21). Draisaitl also followed McDavid by becoming the second player to reach the 100-point mark in 2022-23 (March 14 vs. OTT). The duo became the second set of teammates in NHL history to be the first two players to hit the milestone in consecutive seasons, following the Boston Bruins’ tandem of Phil Esposito and Bobby Orr in 1973-74 and 1974-75. The 27-year-old Draisaitl, who claimed the Hart Memorial Trophy, Ted Lindsay Award and Art Ross Trophy in 2019-20, already has compiled career highs in assists and points this season while nearing his third 50-goal campaign. He has played in 74 total contests, sitting among the League leaders in power-play goals (1st; 29), game-winning goals (t-1st; 10), points (2nd; 117), power-play points (2nd; 57), assists (3rd; 70), shooting percentage (4th; 20.5%), goals (t-4th; 47) and power-play assists (5th; 28).

THIRD STAR – CLAYTON KELLER, RW, ARIZONA COYOTES

Keller shared the League lead with 12 goals and placed third in the NHL with 12-12—24 across 16 outings to guide Arizona (27-36-13, 67 points) to a 6-6-4 March. He found the scoresheet in each of his final 14 games of the month (March 5-31: 11-12—23), tied for the League’s longest active point streak (w/ Elias Pettersson, VAN) as well as the longest by a Coyotes/Jets player since 1995-96 (Teemu Selanne: 5-18—23 in 15 GP w/ WIN). Keller also scored in nine of his 16 contests, including three multi-goal efforts, and produced six multi-point performances. He reached the 30-goal milestone for the first time (March 14 vs. CGY), topped his career high in assists (March 18 vs. CHI) and became the first Coyotes/Jets player with 80 points in a season (March 26 vs. COL) since Keith Tkachuk in 1996-97 (52‑34—86 in 81 GP). The 24-year-old Keller has played in 76 total games this season, pacing Arizona in goals (36; 14 more than the next-closest player), assists (46; 13 more than the next-closest player) and points (82; 28 more than the next-closest player). He has registered points in 24 of his 26 outings since the All-Star break (18-23—41); only one NHL player has accumulated more points in that timeframe (McDavid: 20-32—52 in 26 GP).

Oilers’ Skinner Named NHL ‘Rookie of the Month’ for March

NHL Editor
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Oilers’ Skinner Named NHL ‘Rookie of the Month’ for March

NEW YORK – Edmonton Oilers goaltender Stuart Skinner, who led the entire NHL (rookies and veterans) with 10 wins in 12 games (10-1-1, 2.83 GAA, .908 SV%, 1 SO), has been named the NHL’s “Rookie of the Month” for March.

Skinner edged Arizona Coyotes left wing Matias Maccelli (6-7—13 in 16 GP), Buffalo Sabres right wing JJ Peterka (3-8—11 in 13 GP), Dallas Stars center Wyatt Johnston (7-3—10 in 15 GP), Nashville Predators right wing Luke Evangelista (5-4—9 in 15 GP) and Vegas Golden Knights left wing Pavel Dorofeyev (5-2—7 in 9 GP) for the honor.

Skinner set a franchise record for wins in a calendar month by a rookie or veteran, besting the previous high of nine established by Andy Moog in January 1983 (9-1-2 in 12 GP) and matched by Grant Fuhr in December 1988 (9-3-1 in 13 GP), Tommy Salo in March 2003 (9-3-1 in 13 GP) and Mike Smith in April 2022 (9-0-0 in 9 GP).

Skinner, who in February became the second rookie netminder in Edmonton history to play in the All-Star Game (following Fuhr in 1982), became the first rookie goaltender on any team to outright lead the League in wins during a calendar month since February 2019, when Jordan Binnington did so with the St. Louis Blues (10-1-0 in 11 GP).

Skinner, who made at least 25 saves in 10 of his 12 March appearances, capped the month with 43 stops March 30 vs. LAK for his second career shutout (and first of 2022-23). Only three other netminders, rookie or veteran, in Oilers history have recorded as many saves in a regular-season shutout: Ben Scrivens (59 SV; Jan. 29, 2014 vs. SJS), Curtis Joseph (52 SV; Dec. 10, 1996 at DET) and Nikolai Khabibulin (43 SV; March 26, 2013 at STL).

The 24-year-old Skinner, a third-round pick (78th overall) in the 2017 NHL Draft, owns a 25-14-5 record with a 2.88 goals-against average and .911 save percentage in 46 total contests this season. His 25 wins are the second-most by an Edmonton rookie in a single campaign, behind Fuhr’s 28 in 1981-82 (48 GP), as well as the most by a rookie on any team since Matt Murray earned 32 in 2016-17 (49 GP w/ PIT).

Skinner is the first Oilers player to receive “Rookie of the Month” honors since current teammate Connor McDavid won the award three times in 2015-16 (October, February and March). He is the fifth straight goaltender to claim the honor this season, following Logan Thompson (VGK) in November, Pyotr Kochetkov (CAR) in December, Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen (BUF) in January and Mads Sogaard (OTT) in February.

Stuart Skinner in March

DateOpponentSASVGAMINResult
March 1TORONTO2826260:005-2 W
March 3WINNIPEG2825359:426-3 W
March 6at Buffalo3937260:003-2 W
March 9at Boston2826260:003-2 W
March 11at Toronto3731658:437-4 L
March 14OTTAWA3229359:536-3 W
March 16DALLAS2625160:004-1 W
March 18at Seattle3733460:006-4 W
March 22ARIZONA1714361:234-3 OT W
March 25VEGAS3430462:264-3 OT L
March 28at Vegas2218460:007-4 W
March 30LOS ANGELES4343059:542-0 W
Totals 37133734722:0110-1-1

NHL Preview: Los Angeles Kings (44-22-10) at Vancouver Canucks (34-34-7)

NHL Editor
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NHL Preview: Los Angeles Kings (44-22-10) at Vancouver Canucks (34-34-7)

LOS ANGELES KINGS NOTES:

APRIL 2 vs. Vancouver Canucks – 5:00 PM PT // Venue: Rogers Arena // TV: Bally Sports West // Radio: iHeartRadio

  • The LA Kings visit the Vancouver Canucks for the third of four meetings between these two clubs this season (4-1 L on Nov. 18; 2-3 SOL on Mar. 18; Apr. 10).
  • Tonight’s game marks the fourth, and final, game of the Kings’ four-game Pacific Division road trip (2-1 L on Mar. 28 at CGY; 2-0 L on Mar. 30 at EDM; 3-1 W on April 1 at SEA).
  • The Kings will open a three-home game month of April with two of their three games at Crypto.com Arena against Pacific Division opponents (Apr. 4 vs. EDM; Apr. 10 vs. VAN).

WARM-UPS
1) Tonight is the second game of the Kings’ 11th, and final, set of back-to-backs this season. Prior to this weekend, the team is 12-4-4 in back-to-backs (7-2-1 in the first game, 5-2-3 in the second).
2) The Kings have points in three of their last four games vs. Vancouver, dating back to Dec. 30, 2021 (1-1-2).
3) No Kings skater has more takeaways this season than Anze Kopitar (44).
4) The Kings have allowed two or fewer goals in 13 of their last 14 games, dating back to the beginning of March.
5) Only Nashville’s Roman Josi (4) and New York Ranger’s Adam Fox (3) have more road goals among defensemen this season than Matt Roy (2).

vs. VANCOUVER ALL-TIME:
All-Time Record: 112-110-32-8
Home: 68-44-16-4
Away: 44-66-16-4
OT: 7-6 (20 ties)
Shootout: 6-5
2021-22: 1-1-1
2022-23: 0-1-1

FRANCHISE LEADERS vs. VANCOUVER:
Marcel Dionne – 68 GP, 97 PTS (46-51=97)
Dave Taylor – 96 GP, 87 PTS (37-50=87)
Luc Robitaille – 81 GP, 84 PTS (39-45=84)
Bernie Nicholls – 59 GP, 78 PTS (25-53=78)
Wayne Gretzky – 47 GP, 75 PTS (20-55=75)
*-denotes active roster player

LAST MEETING vs. VANCOUVER: Mar. 18, 2023 – LAK 2 vs. VAN 3 (SO)
Venue: Crypto.com Arena
LAK Goals: Edler (2), Grundstrom (9)
VAN Goals: Boeser (13), Pettersson (32), Kuzmenko (SO), Miller (SO GDG)
Goalies: LAK: Korpisalo (SOL; 15 saves – 17 shots) VAN: Demko (SOW; 38 saves – 40 shots)
LAK PP: 0-for-2
LAK PK: 0-for-1

THE NEXT THREE:
Tues., April 4 | vs. Edmonton Oilers | 7:30 p.m. PT | ESPN | LA Kings iHeart Radio Audio Network
The Kings will face off against the Oilers for the second time in five days.

Thurs., April 6 | at Vegas Golden Knights | 7:00 p.m. PT | Bally Sports West | LA Kings iHeart Radio Audio Network
The Kings have won three of their last five games vs. the Golden Knights.

Sat., April 8 | vs. Colorado Avalanche | 7:30 p.m. PT | Bally Sports West | LA Kings iHeart Radio Audio Network
The Kings aim to sweep the season series vs. Colorado for the seventh time in franchise history and the first
since the 2017-18 season (3-0-0).

INJURY & MGL REPORT
Player, Games Missed, Date(s), Status
F Trevor Moore, 23 games, Dec. 27 – Jan. 31 (upper-body); Feb. 23 – Mar. 6 (upper-body)
F Alex Iafallo, 23 games, Oct. 18 – Dec. 3 (lower-body)
F Brendan Lemieux, 18 games, Nov. 14 – Dec. 20 (lower-body)
F Arthur Kaliyev, 18 games, Dec. 22 – Jan. 31 (lower-body)
F Carl Grundstrom, 15 games, Jan. 19 – Feb. 26 (lower-body)
F Gabriel Vilardi, 11 games, Nov. 27 (lower-body); Jan. 19 – Feb. 13 (undisclosed); Mar. 28 – Pres. (upper-body)
D Sean Durzi, 9 games, Nov. 19 – Nov. 22. (lower-body); Mar. 9 – Mar. 25 (lower-body)
F Kevin Fiala, 7 games, Mar. 11 – Mar. 25 (lower-body), Mar. 30 (lower-body)
F Quinton Byfield, 6 games, Oct. 27 – Nov. 5 (illness)
F Viktor Arvidsson, 3 games, Oct. 13 (illness); Oct. 25 (illness); Jan. 11 (illness)
D Drew Doughty, 1 game, Dec. 11 (lower-body)
D Mikey Anderson, 1 game, Apr. 1 – Pres.
2022-23 Total Regular-Season Man-Games Lost: 135

RECENT TRANSACTIONS (as of 4/1/23)
Mar. 25 – Cole Krygier (D) signed to a two-year entry-level contract with an AAV of $837,500.
Mar. 28 – Jordan Spence (D) loaned to Ontario (AHL).
Mar. 31 – Tobias Bjornfot (D) recalled on emergency basis from Ontario (AHL).

VANCOUVER CANUCKS NOTES:

TV: Sportsnet Pacific, Bally Sports West
Radio: Sportsnet 650

MATCH-UP INFO
• Tonight marks the third of four meetings between the Canucks and Kings this season: Dec. 3 (4-1 W @ VAN), Mar. 18 (3-2 SOW @ LAK), Apr. 2 (home), Apr. 10 (away).
• Vancouver is 118-101-32-11 all-time against Los Angeles, including a 70-38-16-6 record at home.
• The Canucks are 9-0-1 in their last 10 games against the Kings (4-0-1 in their last five).
• J.T. Miller (5-15-20 in 18 GP) leads active Canucks skaters in career points against Los Angeles.
• Elias Pettersson has 19 points (8-11-19) in 12 career games against the Kings.
• Brock Boeser has 18 points (13-5-18) in 14 career games against the Kings.
• Conor Garland has 12 points (3-9-12) in 17 career games against the Kings.
• Quinn Hughes has 11 points (1-10-11) in nine career games against the Kings.
• Thatcher Demko is 4-0-0 in three career games against Los Angeles with a 1.20 GAA and a .966 SV%.
• Collin Delia is 1-2-0 in three career games against Los Angeles with a 3.75 GAA and a .905 SV%.

QUICK NUMBERS
• Elias Pettersson is on a career-high 14-game point streak with 20 points (8-12-20) in those games.
• J.T. Miller has 19 points (8-11-19) in his last 12 games.
• Andrei Kuzmenko has 15 points (9-6-15) in his last 14 games.
• Quinn Hughes has 12 points (2-10-12) in his last eight games.
• Brock Boeser has six points (3-3-6) in his last four games.
• The Canucks are 16-9-4 since Rick Tocchet took over as Head Coach on January 22.

LAST MEETING – MAR. 18/23: VAN 3 at LAK 2 (SO)
Brock Boeser opened the scoring at 10:53 in the first period…J.T. Miller and Quinn Hughes recorded assists…Thatcher Demko stopped Adrian Kempe’s penalty shot attempt to keep the contest tied at one…Elias Pettersson scored six-seconds into the power play at 11:33 in the third period to tie the game at two…Hughes and Miller were credited with the assists…Andrei Kuzmenko scored the game deciding goal in the first round of the shootout…Demko faced 40 shots…Ethan Bear led the team in blocked shots (4) in his first game since returning from injury…Kyle Burroughs led the team in hits (8).

2022.23 TEAM RANKS
VAN LAK
Goals For/Game 3.39 (10th) 3.37 (11th)
Goals Against/Game 3.68 (t-28th) 3.16 (17th)
Power Play % 23.0 (9th) 25.2 (t-2nd)
Penalty Kill % 70.9 (32nd) 75.5 (23rd)
Penalty Min./Game 8:56 (21st) 8:39 (18th)
*Rankings are accurate as of 1:30pm PT on April 1, 2023

LAST GAME PLAYED – MAR. 31/23: VAN 4 vs CGY 5 (OT)
Conor Garland opened the scoring 8:30 into the contest on an unassisted breakway goal…Elias Pettersson doubled the lead 36 seconds into the second period on the power play…Quinn Hughes and Andrei Kuzmenko registered the assists…Aidan McDonough scored his first NHL goal at the 12:12 mark of the second period…Sheldon Dries and Jack Studnicka picked up the assists…Anthony Beauvillier put the Canucks up with 3:54 left in the second period…Pettersson led the team with five shots…Kyle Burroughs had seven hits…Tyler Myers blocked four shots…Thatcher Demko made 36 saves.

LAST 5 vs LOS ANGELES
• Mar. 18/23: VAN 3 @ LAK 2 (SO)
• Nov. 18/22: VAN 4 vs LAK 1
• Apr. 28/22: VAN 3 vs LAK 2 (OT)
• Dec. 30/21: VAN 1 at LAK 2 (SO)
• Dec. 6/21: VAN 4 vs LAK 0

RECENT TRANSACTIONS
• Nikita Tolopilo signed to a two-year, entry-level contract, Mar. 31
• Jack Rathbone recalled under emergency conditions, Mar. 30
• Akito Hirose signed to a one-year, entry-level contract, Mar. 29

MLB Preview: Philadelphia Phillies (0-2) at Texas Rangers (2-0)

MLB Editor
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MLB Preview: Philadelphia Phillies (0-2) at Texas Rangers (2-0)

PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES NOTES:

No info available

TEXAS RANGERS NOTES:

A 2-0 START: Texas has opened a season with back-to-back wins for the 1st time since 2011, when the club won 6 straight to begin a pennant-winning campaign…in both 2021 and 2022, TEX had lost each of its 1st 2 games of the year…the Rangers are seeking to win the 1st 3 games of a season for just the 9th time in team history (see chart below).

• The Rangers sit 2 games above .500 for the 1st time since 8/8/19 (58-56, .509)…club has not been 3-over .500 since a 58-55 mark after losing 1st game of a doubleheader on 8/7/19 at CLE.

LONGEST SEASON-OPENING WIN STREAKS,
TEXAS HISTORY
G Year G Year
7 1996 4 1992
6 1979 3 1983
6 2011 3 1993
4 1977 3 2009

STANDINGS: The Rangers began the day alone in 1st place in the A.L. West, holding a 0.5-game lead over Houston… it marks the 1st time for Texas to be alone atop the West since the final day of team’s division-winning season in 2016 (10/2/16), as club won the division by 9.0 games…from 2017- 22, the Rangers had one day with even a share of 1st place in the West (1-0 on 7/24/20, tied for division lead).

A SERIES WIN: The Rangers have secured a series win to open a season for the 1st time since 2019 (won final 2 G of 3-G series 3/28-31 vs. CHC)…this is just the 2nd time in the last 9 seasons (beg. 2015) for TEX to be victorious in a season’s 1st series…2 of last 3 times that TEX has opened a season with a series win, it came against PHI (also 2014).

• The Rangers went undefeated in a series of 3+ games just one time in 2022: 5/16-18/22 vs. LAA (3-0)…there have been just 6 occasions in team history for Texas to win all games of a season-opening series of 3-or-more contests:

RANGERS WINNING ALL GAMES OF FIRST SERIES OF
A SEASON, 3 GAMES-OR-MORE
Year Detail
1977 3-game series at Baltimore
1983 3-game series vs. Chicago-AL
1992 4-game series at Seattle
1996 3-game series vs. Boston
2009 3-game series vs. Cleveland
2011 3-game series vs. Boston
Note that this list does not include 1979, when TEX won its only game at DET and then went 3-0 vs. CLE in Arlington.

VS. PHILADELPHIA: The Rangers have won 11 straight vs. PHI beginning 4/1/14…the 11-G win streak is the Rangers’ longest ever vs. an N.L. opponent (prev. 7-0 vs. STL, 6/21/13-5/17/19)…it is also one of the 6 longest win streaks that Texas has ever had against any opponent (see chart)… the Rangers went 4-0 last year against the eventual N.L. champs…last year’s 4-0 finish vs. PHI marked just 3rd time in Washington/Texas franchise history (since 1961) to go 4-0 or better against one opponent in a season (12-0 vs. MIN in 1999, 6-0 vs. DET in 2019)…TEX leads all-time, 14-7…TEX is 11-2 vs. PHI in Arlington, winning 9 straight.

LONGEST WIN STREAKS VS. ONE OPPONENT,
RANGERS HISTORY (since 1972)
No. games/Opp/Dates
13 vs. OAK, July 6, 1977-May 18, 1978
13 vs. CLE, April 26, 1978-April 17, 1979
13 vs. MIN, Sept. 7, 1998-Sept. 15, 1999
12 vs. HOU, July 7, 2013-April 11, 2014
12 vs. KC, July 23, 2016-July 15, 2017
11 vs. PHI, April 1, 2014-current

YOU LOVE TO SEE IT: Marcus Semien hit a leadoff HR yesterday, just the 2nd ever by a Texas batter at Globe Life Field (also Willie Calhoun on 10/2/21 vs. CLE)…Semien now has 15 career leadoff HR, including 3 as a Ranger.

DON’T MESS WITH TEXAS: The Rangers have scored 27 runs through 2 G, easily the highest total in MLB entering today’s games (LAD were next w/ 19 R thru 3 G)…Rangers entered Sunday with 2 of the 4 highest single-game run totals in MLB in ‘23, including the high of 16 R yesterday vs. PHI…the 16 R were Rangers’ most at home since 9/2/18 vs. MIN (18-4 win), and most ever by any one team in a game at Globe Life Field (regular or postseason)…it is also T2nd-most runs ever by a team in its 1st 2 G of a season (see chart).

• The 27 R are the most by TEX over any 2-G span since plating 29 R on 4/27-28/19 at SEA (15-1 and 14-1 wins).

• The 27 R in Bruce Bochy’s 1st 2 G as Rangers manager are T2nd-most in any such instance in modern era: 30 R by 1951 CWS (Paul Richards), 27 R by 1978 MIL (George Bamberger) – credit Elias/Sarah Langs.

MOST RUNS IN 1ST 2 GAMES OF SEASON, MODERN ERA
R Year/Team
30 1951 Chicago White Sox
27 1974 Kansas City Royals
27 1978 Milwaukee Brewers
27 1980 Milwaukee Brewers
27 2023 Texas Rangers

MITCH MASH: Mitch Garver hit a pair of 3-R HR yesterday, matching his career high with 6 RBI (also 9/28/18 vs. CWS)…marked the most RBI by a Ranger in a single game since Rougned Odor on 9/28/19 vs. NYY (also 6 RBI), and the first 6+ RBI game by a Texas backstop since Mike Napoli
on 9/30/12 vs. LAA-G2 (also 2 HR, 6 RBI)…it was also just the 2nd game of 6+ RBI ever at Globe Life Field (reg. or postseason), the other was by SD’s Fernando Tatis Jr. on 8/17/20 (7 RBI)…the only other TEX catcher to hit multiple HR in his season debut? Iván Rodríguez on 4/3/00 vs. CWS (2 HR).

THREE’S COMPANY?: With Mitch Garver’s 2 blasts yesterday, and Robbie Grossman’s shot on Opening Day, the Rangers have a MLB-high 3 three-run HR or grand slams in

2023…the rest of MLB has 6: 2-LAD, 1-BAL/CIN/COL/SEA…TEX had a total of 20 such HR in 2022, 10th-fewest in MLB.

INTERLEAGUE: The Rangers have won 13 of last 18 Interleague games beg. 4/30/22…club was 11-9 (.550) vs. N.L. in 2022 after 4 straight losing seasons from 2018-21…TEX has also won 7 of last 9 at home vs. N.L. clubs…as a result of this year’s balanced schedule for all 30 clubs – a first since Interleague play was introduced in 1997 – the Rangers are slated to play a record 46 Interleague contests in 2023.

ESPN SUNDAY NIGHT BASEBALL: Tonight marks the Rangers’ 1st Globe Life Field appearance on ESPN Sunday Night Baseball…last Rangers appearance came on 4/15/18 at HOU, a memorable 3-1, 10-inning TEX win in which Rangers starter Bartolo Colon took a perfect game into the 8th inning…last time on SNB in Arlington?: 5/19/13 vs. DET, an 11-8 TEX loss in which Miguel Cabrera hit 3 HR.

PITCHERS PARK?: The 1st 2 games of the season in Arlington have featured combined run totals of 18 (11-7 on Thurs.) and 19 (16-3 on Sat.)…over the 1st 3 seasons at Globe Life Field (2020-22, reg. season only), the park featured a total of just 5 games with combined runs of 18-or-more…yesterday’s 19 R were T2nd-most ever at this facility (21 R in 14-7 loss on 7/12/22 vs. OAK; 19 R in 13-6 loss on 6/22/21 vs. OAK).

CLOSED!: With the forecast for potential severe storms in the area today, the Globe Life Field roof is expected to be closed for tonight’s game…each of the 1st 2 games of this series began with the roof open…in Thursday’s opener, the roof was closed in the top of the 4th inning due to rain in the area.

TONIGHT’S STARTING PITCHER – #54 Martín Pérez, RHP

TODAY: The 32-year-old left-hander is scheduled to make his season debut in the third and last game of this season-opening series in Arlington tonight…after returning to the Rangers on a one-year free agent deal for 2022, he elected to stay with Texas in 2023 on a one-year deal after accepting the club’s qualifying offer in November…spent the first 11 seasons of his professional career with Texas from 2008-18, and has now been with the organization for 12 of his 15 years as a pro…left the club for three years for brief stints with Minnesota (2019) and
Boston (2020-21)…has a 55-57 record with a 4.28 ERA over 173 games/160 starts in his Rangers career, ranking among all-time Texas leaders in starts (7th), wins (T11th), and strikeouts (13th, 631)…since 2016, his first full campaign after returning from ‘Tommy John’ surgery, he has the 2nd-most starts (175) and innings (1023.2) of any pitcher in the American League…saw two seasons cut short in 2014-15 following ‘Tommy John’ ligament reconstruction surgery on his left elbow on 5/19/14, and also missed time in 2018 after suffering a broken right (non-throwing) elbow.

SEASON DEBUT NOTES: Has produced a 2-5 record and a 5.80 ERA (33 ER/51.2 IP) in 11 season-debut games pitched (nine starts)…has logged at least 5.0 IP in eight of his nine season debut starts…..took a loss in his season-debut last year on 4/12//22 vs. COL (4.0 IP, 7 H, 3 R-ER, 1 BB, 2 HB, 2 SO, 68 pitches/43 strikes)…allowed two runs in the third inning after starting the inning holding a 1-0 lead…exited the game in the 5th inning with Texas down 3-1 after pitching to two batters and allowing one run in the frame.

VS. PHILADELPHIA: Boasts a lifetime 3-1 record and 3.14 ERA (15 ER/43.0 IP) in eight career games (seven starts) against the Phillies…went undefeated (1-0) in his two starts vs. Philadelphia last season, not allowing a run to score in 13.0 innings, along with 10 hits, 7 walks and 10 strikeouts…Philadelphia batters had a .222 average (10-for-45) average against him last year…lasted at least six innings in both starts against the Phillies last season…since 2021, he owns a 2-1 record with a 2.38 ERA (6 ER/22.2 IP) in four starts against the Phils, giving up 21 hits (three home runs) and 10 walks, along with 21 strikeouts.

SPRING TRAINING: Registered a 1-0 record, a 2.45 ERA (3 ER/11.0 IP), and one walk against 9 strikeouts over three ‘A’ game starts in Cactus League play this spring…started on Tues. vs. KC (ND, 5.0 IP, 2 H, 1 R-ER, 1 BB, 5 SO, 1 HR, 70 pitches/49 strikes), the second of two Rangers exhibition games against the Royals at Globe Life Field this week…also pitched in a minor league game against the Kansas City Royals system on 3/23, allowing two runs on three hits (one home run), along with a walk and five strikeouts.
Date Opp. Dec. ERA IP H R ER BB SO HR P/S
2/27 at CIN W 3.00 3.0 3 1 1 0 1 0 —
3/4 at CWS — 3.00 3.0 4 2 1 0 3 1 —
3/23 vs. KC (AAA) — — 4.0 3 2 2 2 8 1 73/47
3/28 vs. KC W — 5.0 2 1 1 1 5 1 —
‘A’ Totals 1-0 2.45 11.0 9 4 3 1 9 2 —

AT HOME / IN GLOBE LIFE FIELD: Owns a 5-5 record with a 2.85 ERA (31 ER/98.0 IP) in 17 career starts at Globe Life Field…has lasted at least five-ormore innings in his last 14-consecutive starts at home…at Globe Life Park, he went 27-20 with a 4.33 ERA (198 ER/411.2 IP) in 76 games (69 starts)…has not allowed a home run in his last five starts at home dating back to 8/14/22.

2022: Pérez produced career bests in ERA (2.89), strikeouts (169), and WHIP (1.258) while being selected to the All-Star Game for the first time…just 3rd MLB pitcher since 2013 to post first career qualifying sub-3.00 ERA in his 11th-or-later MLB season, joining José Quintana (2.93 in 2022) and John Lackey (2.77 in 2015) – credit Elias Sports Bureau…voted American League Pitcher of the Month for May, his 1st career monthly award and 1st Ranger to receive it since Matt Harrison in June 2012…went 4-0, 0.64 ERA (3 ER/42.1 IP) in 6 starts in May (TEX went 6-0)…it was the 2nd-lowest ERA in club history for any month by a Texas pitcher with 5+ starts (Yovani Gallardo, 0.54 in June 2015)…posted his 4th career CG and 3rd career CG SHO on 5/20 at HOU, 1st CG SHO by a Ranger since Kyle Gibson on 9/16/20 at HOU…retired final 16 BF to end outing on 5/31 vs. TB after being struck in right leg by a line drive in the 2nd inn…over 15 starts from 5/10- 7/29, produced a career-best streak of 9 straight winning decisions, T4th-longest win streak in Rangers history (12-Cole Hamels, 2015-16; 12-Bobby Witt, 1990; 11-Fergie Jenkins, 1978-79; 9-Pérez, 2022; 9-Kenny Rogers, 2005), T2nd-longest single-season streak, and T2nd-longest by a left-hander…from 4/23-8/3,
had streak of 19 consecutive starts without taking a loss, which is tied for longest run in Washington/Texas franchise history (also Hamels in 2015-16), as Pérez owns longest single-season unbeaten streak ever by a Texas starter…the 9-G win streak was T2nd-longest in the A.L. and T4th-longest in MLB in 2022…last season marked his fifth career 10-win season, four of which have come with Texas, including a career-high 13 victories in 2017.

NHL Preview: Anaheim Ducks (23-43-10) at Calgary Flames (35-26-15)

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NHL Preview: Anaheim Ducks (23-43-10) at Calgary Flames (35-26-15)

ANAHEIM DUCKS NOTES:

LAST ANAHEIM DUCKS GAME
APRIL 1, 2023 – ANAHEIM 0 @ EDMONTON 6
The Ducks opened their seven-game April schedule and the first game of a back-to-back with a 6-0 loss to the Edmonton Oilers Saturday night at Rogers Place. Max Jones appeared in his 200th career NHL game. John Gibson stopped 31-of-36 shots in 46:34 and Lukas Dostal made eight of nine saves in 13:26 of relief.
PP: 0-3 PK: 2-3 SF: 36 SA: 45 TOI: Cam Fowler (23:54)
Three Stars: 1. L. Draisaitl (EDM) 2. J. Campbell (EDM) 3. C. McDavid (EDM)

UPCOMING GAME SCHEDULE
DATE OPPONENT LOCATION TIME (PT) TV / AUDIO
Apr. 5 Edmonton Honda Center 7 p.m. TNT / Ducks Stream
Apr. 8 Arizona Mullet Arena 2:30 p.m. BSW / Ducks Stream
Apr. 9 Colorado Honda Center 5:30 p.m. TNT / Ducks Stream
Apr. 11 Vancouver Honda Center 7 p.m. BSSC / Ducks Stream
Apr. 13 Los Angeles Honda Center 7 p.m. BSSC / Ducks Stream

RECENT TRANSACTIONS:
Mar. 30 Assigned G Calle Clang from Rogle (SHL) to San Diego (AHL).
Mar. 31 Acquired reserve rights to RW Judd Caulfield from Pittsburgh for reserve rights to D Thimo Nickl.

ANAHEIM DUCKS INJURIES
Man-Games Lost: 392

PLAYER INJURY/ILLNESS EXPECTED ABSENCE GAMES MISSED
John Moore Upper-body Indefinite 76
Jamie Drysdale Torn labrum (shoulder) 4-6 months 68
Urho Vaakanainen Hip surgery 5-6 months 26
Anthony Stolarz Knee surgery Week-to-week 24
Adam Henrique MCL sprain Week-to-week 18
Troy Terry Personal Day-to-day 3

ANAHEIM DUCKS NOTES
TONIGHT’S GAME: The Anaheim Ducks conclude a three-game road trip spanning four days tonight vs. the Calgary Flames at Scotiabank Saddledome (5 p.m. PT, TV: Bally Sports SoCal, AUDIO: Ducks Stream). Anaheim enters tonight with points in 11 of the last 18 (7-6-4) and 13 of the last 20 contests away from home (9-7-4). Tonight closes Anaheim’s 10th set of back-to-back games, posting a 2-12-5 mark overall this season (1-7-1 in the second contest). Anaheim continues its seven-game April schedule, the final contests remaining on Anaheim’s 2022-23 schedule. The Ducks will play in either the Pacific (4 games) and Mountain (2 games) time zones, with four home contest and two road contests on the calendar. Milestones within reach tonight include Trevor Zegras is currently one goal and one assist from matching his career-highs of 23 and 38 respectively set last season, and two points shy of his 61 last season, and Cam Fowler one goal to tying his career high in goals set in 2016-17 (11). Following tonight’s game, the Ducks will return home to host the Edmonton Oilers on Wednesday, April 5 at Honda Center (7 p.m. PT).

DUCKS-FLAMES: Anaheim and Calgary conclude a four-game season series tonight at Scotiabank Saddledome. The Ducks have earned points in two of the first three games of the series, earning a 3-1 win Mar. 10 in Calgary earned a point in a 3-2 OT loss Dec. 23 in Orange County. The Flames earned a 5-1 win in Anaheim in the most recent matchup Mar. 21 at Honda Center. The Ducks own a 62-46-11 all-time record vs. the Flames, including a 23-33-3 mark in Calgary. John Gibson (11-7-1) has a career 2.35 GAA, .922 SV% and two shutouts in 19 games vs. the Flames (18 starts). Lukas Dostal made 42 saves in his lone appearance against Calgary Dec. 23, his second-most saves in a single game. Jakob Silfverberg (10-12=22 in 35 GP) leads active Ducks skaters in scoring and goals vs. the Flames while Cam Fowler (3-17=20 in 46 GP) leads active Ducks in assists vs. Calgary. This season, Max Comtois (1-2=3), Jakob Silfverberg (1-2=3) and Frank Vatrano (1-2=3) co-lead Anaheim in points, while Cam Fowler (0-2=2) co-leads the club in assists through the first three games.

ANA-CGY SEASON SERIES:
DATE LOCATION TIME / RESULT TV / AUDIO
Dec. 23 Honda Center 3-2 CGY OT win
Mar. 10 Scotiabank Saddledome 3-1 ANA win
Mar. 21 Honda Center 5-1 CGY win
Apr. 2 Scotiabank Saddledome 5 p.m. PT Bally Sports SoCal / Ducks Stream

ANA-CGY ALL-TIME SERIES:
Overall @ Anaheim @ Calgary
All-Time Series: 62-46-11 39-13-8 23-33-3
Current Streak: One CGY win Six CGY wins One ANA win
Last Win by ANA: Mar. 10, 2023 (3-1) Apr. 3, 2019 (3-1) Mar. 10, 2023 (3-1)
Last Win by CGY: Mar. 21, 2023 (5-1) Mar. 21, 2023 (5-1) Feb. 16, 2022 (6-2)
ANA Last 10: 2-6-2 3-5-2 5-5-0

CALGARY FLAMES NOTES:

FLAMES LAST GAME RECAP
March 31, 2023 – CALGARY FLAMES [5] vs. VANCOUVER CANUCKS 4
The Flames made their first trip to Vancouver in the 2022-23 season on Friday night for a clash with the Canucks. Vancouver would score the only goal of the opening frame off the stick of Conor Garland to lead through 20 and would double their advantage just 36 seconds into the second period to go up 2-0. Tyler Toffoli would draw the Flames within one with his new career-high 32nd goal on the campaign, followed by Blake Coleman scoring to tie the game. Vancouver would respond and retake the lead before Troy Stecher buried his second as a Flame to tie the game once again. Vancouver would again respond to go up 4-3 through 40. It would take Calgary until the 16:47 mark to find another answer, but the Flames resilience would pay off with Jonathan Huberdeau scoring his 15th to draw the Flames level late in the third, and the back-and-forth contest required overtime. In the extra frame, Tyler Toffoli once again played hero for the Flames, burying his second of the game, and fourth game-winning goal to give the Flames a huge two points in a 5-4 overtime victory.

CGY GOAL SCORERS:
GOALIE: Markstrom (16/20, .800 Sv%)
PP: 1/6 (16.6%)
PK: 1/2 (50%)
FLAMES LAST FIVE RESULTS, RECORD: 4-1-0

DATE RESULT GWG CGY GOALIE OPP. GOALIE
March 31, 2023 CGY [5] at VAN 4 Toffoli Markstrom Demko
March 28, 2023 LAK [1] vs. CGY [2] Duehr Markstrom Korpisalo
March 25, 2023 SJS [3] vs. CGY [5] Kadri Markstrom Kahkonen
March 23, 2023 VGK [3] vs. CGY [2] Roy Markstrom Thompson
March 21, 2023 CGY [5] at ANA [1] Stecher Vladar Gibson
*shootout winning goal

FLAMES UPCOMING SCHEDULE:
DATE TIME
(MST) OPPONENT VENUE
April 2, 2023 6:00pm vs. Anaheim Ducks Scotiabank Saddledome
April 4, 2023 7:00pm vs. Chicago Blackhawks Scotiabank Saddledome
April 5, 2023 5:30pm at Winnipeg Jets Canada Life Centre
April 8, 2023 8:00pm at Vancouver Canucks Rogers Arena
April 10, 2023 7:30pm vs. Nashville Predators Scotiabank Saddledome

TONIGHTS STORYLINES & STATS
This is the fourth and final matchup this season between the Flames and Ducks. The Flames have gone 2-1-0 against Anaheim this season. This is a Pacific Division matchup; The Flames have an overall record of 14-6-3 against Pacific Division opponents this season and a record of 23-14-7 against Western Conference opponents.

FLAMES VERSUS THE DUCKS THIS SEASON:
The Calgary Flames and Anaheim Ducks get set to square off for the fourth time this season, and the second at the Scotiabank Saddledome. In meeting number one, the Flames got goals from Michael Stone and Brett Ritchie, while Mason McTavish and Jakob Silfverberg scored for the Ducks in a contest that was tied through regulation. In overtime, Tyler Toffoli would feed Rasmus Andersson who would snap home his career-high fourth game-winning goal of the season and the Flames headed into the Christmas Break with a 3-2 win over the Ducks. In meeting number two, Calgary again scored first courtesy of Mikael Backlund, but the Ducks would respond with three unanswered goals to win 3-1. In their most recent meeting, Troy Stecher scored his first goal as a Flame, along with goals from Nick Ritchie, Rasmus Andersson, Elias Lindholm, and Andrew Mangiapane in a 5-1 win at the Honda Center back on March 21st . Dan Vladar backstopped the Flames and turned aside 19 of the 20 shots he faced.

QUICK HITS:
MacKenzie Weegar recorded a pair of assists on Thursday in Vancouver, while Tyler Toffoli (2-0), Troy Stecher (1-1), and Mikael Backlund (0-2) also recorded two-point nights. Jonathan Huberdeau scored a late equalizer for the Flames to give him nine points in his last 10 games (3G, 6A), and Blake Coleman has now scored in two-straight games against the Canucks.

DID YOU KNOW?
The Flames erased an early 2-0 deficit to comeback and win for their sixth multi-goal comeback of the season with the previous efforts coming on October 18th vs. VGK, October 22nd vs. CAR, December 7th vs. MIN, February 11th at BUF, and February 22nd at ARI. Noah Hanifin scored his first NHL goal against the Anaheim Ducks back on November 16th, 2015.

CALGARY FLAMES vs. ANAHEIM DUCKS
CGY vs. ANA ALL-TIME HOME AWAY L10 STRK
50-53-7-9 35-21-1-2 15-32-6-7 8-1-1 W1

GAME INFO:
Calgary Flames vs. Anaheim Ducks
6:00pm MT
Scotiabank Saddledome
TV: Sportsnet West
Radio: Sportsnet Fan 960

2022-23 Season Series: 2-1-0 (Home: 0-1-0, Road 2-0-0)
Dec. 23, 2022 – CGY [3] at ANA 2
Mar. 10, 2023 – ANA [3] at CGY [1]
Mar. 21, 2023 – CGY [5] at ANA [1]
Apr. 2, 2023 – ANA at CGY

2021-22 Season Record vs. ANA: 3-0-1 (Home: 1-0-1, Road: 2-0-0)
Last Home Win vs. ANA: February 16, 2022 – Anaheim [2] vs. Calgary [6]
Last Road Win @ ANA: December 23, 2022 – Calgary [3] at Anaheim 2
Last Home Loss vs. ANA: March 10, 2023 – Anaheim [3] vs. Calgary [1]
Last Road Loss @ ANA: April 3, 2019 – Calgary [1] at Anaheim [3]

2022-23 CALGARY FLAMES
FLAMES RECENT TRANSACTIONS:
Mar. 30 – signed William Stromgren (F) to a three-year entre level contract
Mar. 30 – signed William Stromgren (F) to an ATO, assigned to Calgary (AHL)
Mar. 31 – activated Michael Stone (D) from IR

FLAMES RECENT INJURIES (Total man games lost – 65)
Noah Hanifin – illness (1 game: Oct. 21)
Chris Tanev – upper-body (5 games: Nov. 3 – Nov. 10)
Jonathan Huberdeau – upper-body (3 games: Nov. 8 – Nov. 12)
Michael Stone – lower-body (11 games: Nov. 7 – Nov. 25)
MacKenzie Weegar – non-COVID illness (1 game: Dec. 12)
Elias Lindholm – upper-body injury (1 game: Dec. 12)
Chris Tanev – upper-body injury (3 games: Dec. 14 – Dec. 18)
Radim Zohorna – non-COVID illness (1 game: Dec. 18)
Dennis Gilbert – lower-body injury (4 games: Dec. 20 – Dec. 27)
Brett Ritchie – upper-body injury (8 games: Jan. 8 – Jan. 26)
Chris Tanev – injury reserve (2 games: Jan. 26 – Jan. 27)
Rasmus Andersson – day-to-day (3 games: Feb. 9 – Feb. 13)
Michael Stone – lower-body injury (19 games: Feb. 22 – Mar. 28)
Chris Tanev – upper body injury (5 games: Mar. 21 – Mar. 31)

NHL Preview: New Jersey Devils (48-20-8) at Winnipeg Jets (42-31-3)

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NHL Preview: New Jersey Devils (48-20-8) at Winnipeg Jets (42-31-3)

NEW JERSEY DEVILS NOTES:

Last Game:
New Jersey Devils 6 Chicago Blackhawks 3
(48-20-8 – 104 PTS) (24-46-6 – 54 PTS)
Three Stars: 1. J. Boqvist 2. E. Haula 3. A. Athanasiou
SCORE 1ST 2ND 3RD OT SO FINAL
Chicago 0 2 1 – – 3
DEVILS 0 3 3 – – 6
Goals:
CHI: T. Johnson, L. Reichel, A. Athanasiou
NJD: D. Hamilton, E. Haula, J. Boqvist, R. Graves, T. Meier, D. Mercer (ENG)

INJURIES/ILLNESS
PLAYER INJURY OUT SINCE GAMES MISSED
Jonathan Bernier – LTIR Lower-body, hip 2021-22 76
Nate Bastian Upper-body 3/13/23 10
Curtis Lazar Undisclosed 3/19/23 7
2022-23 Total Man-Games Lost to Injury/illness: 213

WHAT TO KNOW
Jersey’s team opened its 12th back-to-back set for the 2022-23 campaign and improved to 6-5-1 in first half games played, after a 6-3 win at Chicago on Saturday. Jersey’s team is 9-2-0 in the second half for back-to-back sets this season. The team’s nine wins in second half games played are tied for the most in the NHL with Boston, but Jersey’s .818 points% for second half games ranks first in the NHL. The Devils officially clinched a berth in the Stanley Cup Playoffs on Saturday, March 25 for the first time since 2017-18, but also earned 100 points in a season for the first time since 2011-12 (48-28-6=102 PTS). It marked the 14th time in franchise history that the Devils earned 100, or more, points in a single season for the standings. After Thursday’s win vs the New York Rangers, the Devils earned more than 100 points for the first time since 2011-12 (102 PTS). The most points that the Devils earned in a single season was 111 PTS, after posting a 48-19-12 record in 2000-01. The Devils earned 48 wins, or more, in a season for the seventh time in franchise history, after Saturday night’s victory at Chicago. The last time that the team earned 48 wins in a single season was 2011-12 (48-28-6). The Devils enter Sunday’s contest three wins shy of tying the franchise record (51) for the most wins in a single season, which was earned in 2008-09.

UNDEFEATED NORTH OF THE BORDER
The Devils visit Winnipeg on Sunday and can become the third American team in NHL history that was undefeated when playing at least eight road games vs a Canadian-based team in a single season. The Devils are one of three American clubs to have gone undefeated in road games against Canadian-based clubs when playing at least seven such games:

VS THE NORTH
Jersey’s team is 13-3-0 vs Canadian-based teams this season:
CGY 2-0-0
EDM 2-0-0
MTL 2-1-0
OTT 3-0-0
TOR 1-2-0
VAN 2-0-0
WPG 1-0-0

VS CONFERENCE/DIVISION
The Devils are 22-4-5 vs the Western Conference this season. The franchise record for most wins vs the Western Conference was 18, which was logged in 2000-01. Jersey’s team is 8-4-3 vs the Central Division. The Devils own a 26-16-3 record vs the Eastern Conference and 15-6-2 vs the Metropolitan Division.

BACK-TO-BACK GAMES
Overall: 15-7-1
First game: 6-5-1 | home: 0-1-0 | road: 6-4-1
Second game: 9-2-0 | home: 4-2-0 | road: 5-0-0

VS WPG
The Devils and Winnipeg conclude their 2022-23 regular-season series,
The Devils defeated the Jets, 4-2, on Feb. 19.
The Devils were 0-2-0 vs the Jets last season.
The last time that the Devils won a season series vs the Jets was 2011-12 (3-1-0)

ALL-TIME vs WPG
Record: 34-23-3-8
Home: 17-11-1-6
Road: 17-12-2-2

DID YOU KNOW…
The most goals in franchise history earned in a single game vs WPG/ATL is nine, which was earned on Mar. 10, 2000, in a 9-0 win at Atlanta.
The most goals that the Devils allowed in a single game vs WPG was on Dec. 3, 2021, in an 8-4 loss at WPG.
The most shots that Jersey earned in a single game vs WPG/ATL was 49, via Jan. 24, 2002, in a 4-2 loss at ATL.
The most shots that the Devils allowed in a single game vs WPG/ATL was 40, which happened twice; last – Dec. 2021, at WPG, in an 8-4 loss.
The last time the Devils shut out WPG/ATL was Apr. 6, 2010, at ATL, in a 3-0 win,
The last time that WPG/ATL shut out the Devils was Oct. 13, 2013, at WPG, in a 3-0 loss.

WINNIPEG JETS NOTES:

Scene Setter
The Winnipeg Jets continue their last homestand of the regular season on Sunday when they welcome the New Jersey Devils to Canada Life Centre. Winnipeg started the five-game homestand with a 6-2 win over the Detroit Red Wings on Friday night to end a two-game slide. After Sunday’s game, the Jets continue the homestand on Wednesday against the Calgary Flames and Saturday against the Nashville Predators.

Tale of the Tape
WPG Stat NJD
76 GP 75
42 W 47
31 L 20
3 OT 8
87 PTS 102
227 GF 259
214 GA 207
19.1% PP 21.4%
82.5% PK 82.2%

Next Five Games
Date Opp TV Radio
Apr. 2 NJD TSN CJOB/Power 97
Apr. 5 CGY SN CJOB/Power 97
Apr. 8 NSH SN CJOB/Power 97
Apr. 10 SJS SN CJOB/Power 97
Apr. 11 At MIN TSN CJOB/Power 97

Recent Five Games
Date Opp SC Res Streak
Mar. 21 ARI 2-1 W 1W
Mar. 23 At ANA 3-2 W 2W
Mar. 25 At LAK 4-1 L 1L
Mar. 28 At SJS 3-0 L 2L
Mar. 31 DET 6-2 W 1W

Broadcast Information
TV: TSN
Play-By-Play: Dan Robertson
Analyst: Kevin Sawyer
Rinkside: John Lu
Radio: 680 CJOB/Power 97
Play-By-Play: Paul Edmonds
Analyst: Jamie Thomas
Host: Kelly Moore

Upcoming Schedule
Sunday, April 2
Morning Skate 9:00 a.m.
Jets vs. New Jersey Devils 6:00 p.m.
Monday, April 3
Day Off – No Media Availability
Tuesday, April 4
Practice – Canada Life Centre 11:00 a.m.
All Times Local

Last Game
Winnipeg Jets 6
Detroit Red Wings 2
Jets Scorers: Connor (29), Wheeler (16), Scheifele (39), DeMelo (5), Niederreiter (23), Ehlers (10)
Red Wings Scorers: Perron (20), Veleno (8)
Jets Goaltender: Connor Hellebuyck (23 sv, 2 ga)
Red Wings Goaltender: Magnus Hellberg (23 sv, 6 ga)
Jets PP: 0-for-3
Jets PK: 0-for-1
Recap: The Jets scored three times in the first period en route to a 6-2 victory over the Detroit Red Wings on Friday night. Seven players had two points, including Dylan DeMelo, Blake Wheeler, Nikolaj Ehlers, Mark Scheifele, and Kyle Connor who had a goal and an assi st. Nino Niederreiter scored Winnipeg’s other goal and paced the team with five shots. Pierre-Luc Dubois and Vladislav Namestnikov each had three
blocked shots.

Where They Stand
The Jets are in the second wild card position in the Western Conference… Winnipeg trails the Seattle Kraken by three points for the first wild card spot, while the Calgary Flames are two points behind the Jets and the Nashville Predators trail Winnipeg by five points.

Marching
The Jets went 7-7-1 in March… Winnipeg has had a .500 or better record in March in each of the past seven seasons, including going 11-3-1 in 2017-18 and 10-5-1 last season… Nikolaj Ehlers led the Jets in scoring in March with 11 points (5G, 6A) in 15 games, while Kyle Connor (2G, 8A) each had 10 points in 15 games… Ehlers, Mark Scheifele and Nino Niederreiter shared the goal scoring lead for the Jets this month with five tallies.

Beasts from the East
Sunday’s game against New Jersey is Winnipeg’s final game against an Eastern Conference opponent this season… The Jets are 14-17-0
against the Eastern Conference this season… Winnipeg hasn’t posted a winning record against the East since going 18-12-2 in 2018-19… Kyle
Connor leads the Jets in scoring against the Eastern Conference with 30 points (14G, 16A) in 31 games… Mark Scheifele has 16 goals in 31
games against the East this season.

All 76
Five members of the Jets have played all 76 games this season – Kyle Connor, Brenden Dillon, Adam Lowry, Neal Pionk, and Mark Scheifele…
Scheifele has played all 82 games in a season twice in his career, while Connor, Dillon and Lowry have each done it once… Pionk could play all
82 games for the first time in his career… The Jets didn’t have anyone play all 82 games last season.

Backend Production
Jets defencemen have combined for 176 points (43G, 133A) this season, which is tied for seventh in the NHL… A defenceman has been in on
36 of Winnipeg’s past 45 goals… Josh Morrissey (69), Neal Pionk (31), Dylan DeMelo (24), and Brenden Dillon (22) have all reached the 20-
point mark, while Nate Schmidt has 16 points.

Home Comforts
The Jets are 23-12-2 at Canada Life Centre this season, which is tied for seventh in the NHL and third in the Western Conference… Kyle Connor
(16G, 27A) leads the team with 43 points in 37 home games… Mark Scheifele’s 20 goals at home leads the team and has him four goals behind
his career high 24 goals he had at home during the 2018-19 season… Winnipeg is 252-161-38 all-time at Canada Life Centre and have posted a
.500 record or better at home in six consecutive seasons.

PK Prowess
Winnipeg is sixth in the NHL with a penalty kill successful 82.5% of the time… Winnipeg has given up a power play goal against in four
consecutive games for the first time this season… The last time the Jets had a penalty kill better than 82% was in 2013-14 when they finished the
season at 83.2%… The franchise record for penalty kill percentage in a season is 85.2%, which occurred in Atlanta during the 2003-04 season.

Jets vs. NJD Records
Overall Record
GP W L OT
68 31 28 9

Home Record
GP W L OT
33 14 15 4

Away Record
GP W L OT
35 17 13 5

Jets vs. NJD Notes
Season Series
The Jets and Devils square off for the second time this season on Sunday… Winnipeg lost 4-2 in the first meeting on Feb. 19 at New Jersey… It was the Jets first regulation loss to the Devils since Jan. 13/16.

Recent History
Winnipeg is 15-2-3 in their past 20 games against the Devils. Nine of the 20 games have been decided by one goal. The Jets have scored one goal in their past 11 games against New Jersey (1-for-23, 4.3%).

In New Jersey
The Jets are 8-2-1 in 11 games all-time against the Devils at Canada Life Centre, including an 8-4 win last season.

Player Notes
Mark Scheifele has 22 points (11G, 11A) in 15 career games against New Jersey… Nino Niederreiter has scored two of his five goals against the Devils on the power play… Nikolaj Ehlers has posted 12 points (5G, 7A) in 13 games against New Jersey.

Jets vs. NJD Past 10 Games
Date Opp Res G GA S PPO PPG PIM SA PPOA PPGA PIMA
03/28/2017 @NJ SOW 4 3 36 3 0 10 23 4 0 6
11/18/2017 NJ W 5 2 34 0 0 4 36 2 0 0
03/08/2018 @NJ W 3 2 24 1 0 8 43 4 0 2
11/11/2018 NJ W 5 2 28 1 0 10 36 3 0 6
12/01/2018 @NJ W 4 3 38 1 0 8 39 3 1 4
10/04/2019 @NJ SOW 5 4 30 2 0 4 39 2 0 4
11/05/2019 NJ SOL 1 2 33 1 0 6 32 3 0 2
12/03/2021 NJ W 8 4 40 4 1 4 37 2 1 8
03/10/2022 @NJ W 2 1 30 2 0 6 34 3 1 4
02/19/2023 @NJ L 2 4 25 3 0 4 29 2 0 6

NHL Preview: Detroit Red Wings (33-33-9) at Toronto Maple Leafs (45-20-10)

NHL Editor
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NHL Preview: Detroit Red Wings (33-33-9) at Toronto Maple Leafs (45-20-10)

DETROIT RED WINGS NOTES:

LAST GAME
RED WINGS 2 at WINNIPEG 6 (3/31/23)
1ST PERIOD: WPG Connor (Dillon, Scheifele) 6:56-EV; WPG Wheeler (Ehlers, Namestnikov) 11:57-EV; WPG Scheifele (Pionk, Connor) 13:34-EV
2ND PERIOD: WPG DeMelo (Appleton, Lowry) 1:20-EV; WPG Niederreiter (Appleton, DeMelo) 13:42-EV
3RD PERIOD: WPG Ehlers (Wheeler, Namestnikov) 5:07-EV; DET Perron (Seider, Larkin) 10:41-PP; DET Veleno (Luff, Erne) 11:02-EV
SHOTS: DET 25 (4-7-14) / WPG 29 (11-10-8)
GOALIES: DET Hellberg (L, 23-29) / WPG Hellebuyck (W, 23-25)
PP: DET 1-1 / WPG 0-3

MAN GAMES LOST (games missed / out since)
Robby Fabbri – lower body (46 / March 8)
Filip Zadina – lower body (41 / March 24)
Michael Rasmussen – lower body (19 / Feb. 25)
Ville Husso – lower body (8 / March 23)
Total Man Games Lost: 286
Individual Man Games Lost: Jakub Vrána (33), Matt Luff (32), Tyler Bertuzzi (31), Robert Hägg (15), Gustav Lindström (14), Elmer Söderblom (13), Lucas Raymond (8), Oskar Sundqvist (7), Ben Chiarot (6), Olli Määttä (4), Jake Walman (3), Adam Erne (2), Jordan Oesterle (2), Alex Chiasson (1), Dylan Larkin (1)

RECENT TRANSACTIONS
3/30 (POSTGAME) – Recalled forward Marco Kasper from Rögle BK (SHL)
3/29 – Assigned forward Taro Hirose to Grand Rapids
3/28 – Recalled forward Taro Hirose from Grand Rapids under emergency conditions … Signed forward Carter Mazur to a three-year entry-level contract beginning with the 2023-24 season
3/27 – Signed defenseman William Wallinder to a three-year entry-level contract beginning with the 2023-24 season

TONIGHT’S GAME
RED WINGS at MAPLE LEAFS / 7:00 P.M. EDT / Scotiabank Arena / TV: BSD / RADIO: WXYT 97.1 FM
TONIGHT: 680th all-time meeting, 337th at Toronto … Fourth of four games this season, second of two at Toronto
ALL-TIME vs. TOR: 287-292-93-7 / AWAY: 111-175-47-3 / LAST 10: 1-9-0 / IN 2021-22: 0-4-0 / THIS SEASON: 1-2-0
DET top scorers vs. TOR: Dylan Larkin (8-12-20 in 24 GP), David Perron (1-10-11 in 18 GP), Andrew Copp (5-6-11 in 19 GP), Lucas Raymond (3-5-8 in 7 GP), Moritz Seider (2-6-8 in 7 GP), Dominik Kubalík (3-3-6 in 7 GP), Robby Fabbri (1-4-5 in 10 GP), Joe Veleno (2-2-4 in 7 GP), Jake Walman (1-2-3 in 5 GP)
TOR top scorers vs. DET: John Tavares (15-30-45 in 32 GP), Auston Matthews (16-14-30 in 20 GP), Mitchell Marner (12-11-23 in 21 GP), Morgan Rielly (4-19-23 in 33 GP), Wayne Simmonds (7-14-21 in 38 GP), Mark Giordano (9-9-18 in 32 GP), William Nylander (8-7-15 in 23 GP), T.J. Brodie (2-12-14 in 24 GP), Michael Bunting (5-5-10 in 6 GP), Erik Gustafsson (1-8-9 in 11 GP), Alexander Kerfoot (2-6-8 in 13 GP), Justin Holl (0-6-6 in 9 GP), Sam Lafferty (2-2-4 in 4 GP), Radim Zohorna (0-2-2 in 1 GP)

UPCOMING GAMES (ALL TIMES EDT)
Tue., April 4: RED WINGS at CANADIENS / 7:00 p.m. / Bell Centre / TV: BSD EXTRA / RADIO: WXYT 97.1 FM
Thu., April 6: RED WINGS vs. SABRES / 7:00 p.m. / LITTLE CAESARS ARENA / TV: BSD / RADIO: WXYT 97.1 FM
Sat., April 8: RED WINGS vs. PENGUINS / 1:00 p.m. / LITTLE CAESARS ARENA / TV: ESPN+, ABC / RADIO: WXYT 97.1 FM

LAST TIME OUT
March 31 at Winnipeg – 6-2 L
Detroit fell at Winnipeg to move to 33-33-9 overall and 14-18-5 on the road … David Perron scored on the power play for his 20th goal of the season … Perron became the third Red Wings skater to reach the 20-goal mark this season, joining Dylan Larkin (28) and Dominik Kubalík (20) … Perron also became the first Red Wings skater age 34 or older to score at least 20 goals in a single season since Pavel Datsyuk (age 36; 26 goals in 2014-15) … Perron reached the 20-goal mark for the seventh time in his NHL career … Perron also hit the 50-point mark for the seventh time in his NHL career … Perron extended his point streak to three-consecutive games (4-2-6 in 3 GP) … Perron has nine points (4-5-9) in seven games since March 20 vs. Florida … Joe Veleno wrapped up the scoring with his eighth goal of the season … Perron and Veleno scored 21 seconds apart in the third period, marking the second-fastest pair of goals by the Red Wings this season … The only faster occurrence this season was on Oct. 14 vs. Montreal, when Michael Rasmussen and Olli Määttä potted empty-netters 13 seconds apart … Moritz Seider logged the primary assist on Perron’s power play goal to extend his point streak to three-straight games (0-4-4 in 3 GP) … Seider has accumulated 26 points (3-23-26) and a plus-eight rating in 37 games dating back to Jan. 10 vs. Winnipeg … Seider’s assist was the 77th of his NHL career, passing Alex Delvecchio for the fifth-most by a Red Wings player before turning 22 … The only other Detroit skaters with more assists prior to their 22nd birthday are Steve Yzerman (194), Gordie Howe (101), Marcel Dionne (99) and Larkin (84) … Larkin recorded an assist on Perron’s power play goal to boost his point streak to three-consecutive games (2-3-5 in 3 GP) … Larkin extended his team lead in assists (45), points (73), power play points (29) and shots (228) through 74 games … Larkin (28-45-73 in 74 GP) has matched his career high in points (32-41-73 in 76 GP in 2018-19) … Larkin has 16 points (6-10-16) in 15 games since he signed an eight-year contract extension on March 1 … Larkin has racked up 29 power play points this season, which are the most by a Red Wings skater since Nicklas Lidström (39) and Henrik Zetterberg (30) in 2010-11 … Matt Luff tallied an assist in his 100th career NHL game, while Adam Erne picked up an assist in his 350th career NHL game … Detroit is 4-for-7 (57.1%) on the power play over its last three games … The Red Wings are also 20-for-22 (90.9%) on the penalty kill dating back to March 21 at St. Louis.

TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS NOTES:

LAST GAME
Score: Toronto 3 at Ottawa 0
Date: Saturday, April 1, 2023
TOR Goals: Bunting, Nylander, Zohorna
OTT Goals: –
TOR Goaltender: Samsonov, 31/31, 1.000 SV%
OTT Goaltender: Sogaard, 13/16, .813 SV% – Talbot, 4/4, 1.000 SV%
TOR Power Play: 0-for-1
TOR Penalty Kill: 2-for-2
Player Notes:

  • Michael Bunting scored for Toronto at 1:23 of the second period. Bunting recorded his 22nd goal of the season, just one goal away from tying his previous career-high in goals (23) which he set in the 2021-22 season with the Maple Leafs.
  • William Nylander scored for the Maple Leafs at 12:56 of the second period. Nylander posted his 37th goal of the 2022-23 campaign, adding to his career-high goal total.
  • Radim Zohorna scored for Toronto at 18:09 of the second period. Zohorna scored his first goal as a Maple Leaf in his debut with the club.
  • Jake McCabe posted the primary assist on Zohorna’s goal. With his assist, McCabe recorded his 23rd point of the season, setting a new career-high in points.
  • TJ Brodie posted the secondary assist on Zohorna’s goal. Brodie has registered an assist in back-to-back games.
  • Zach Aston-Reese skated in his 300th career NHL game.
  • Ilya Samsonov stopped 31 of 31 shots he faced in Saturday’s win. Samsonov earned his fourth shutout of the season and 10th of his NHL career. With four shutouts this season, Samsonov set a new career-high.

Team Notes: – With Saturday’s win, the Maple Leafs earned their 100th point of the season in posting a 45-20-10 record through 75 games. Per NHL Stats, “Toronto hit the 100-point mark in its 75th game of the season – the second-fastest pace in franchise history behind 2021-22 (72 GP).”

  • The Maple Leafs posted their fifth shutout of the season, three of which have been recorded on the road. The team has posted three or more goals in each of their shutout wins.

TONIGHT’S GAME
2022-23 Matchups vs. Detroit: Fourth of Four
2021-22 Record vs. Detroit: 4-0-0
Toronto Season Record: 45-20-10
Toronto Home Record: 25-7-6

TONIGHT’S STORYLINES
The Maple Leafs are scheduled to take on the Detroit Red Wings tonight in the fourth of four matchups between the clubs this season. Toronto has posted a 2-1-0 record against Detroit during the 2022-23 campaign. The Maple Leafs have earned at least one point in 20 of their last 22 meetings against the Red Wings (18-2-2). Toronto returns to Scotiabank Arena for a two-game homestand. The team has posted a 25-7-6 record on home ice this season, currently the third best home record in the league. The Maple Leafs are skating in their second game of a back-to-back. The club has posted an 8-3-1 record in such games this season. With the Ottawa Senators 5-2 win against the Florida Panthers on Monday, March 27th, the Maple Leafs clinched a playoff spot for the seventh-straight season. Earning a playoff spot in seven-consecutive seasons is the fourth-longest streak in franchise history. Toronto earned their spot in the playoffs for the 72nd time in franchise history. The Maple Leafs were the fourth team to clinch a playoff spot for the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs following Boston, Carolina and New Jersey.

BROADCAST INFORMATION
TV: Sportsnet Ontario RADIO: Sportsnet 590

NEXT GAME
Date: Tuesday, April 4, 2023
Opponent: vs. Columbus Blue Jackets
Time: 7:00 pm ET
Broadcast Information: TSN4 (TV), TSN 1050 (Radio)

RECENT TRANSACTIONS
March 31, 2023 The Maple Leafs recalled forward Radim Zohorna from the Toronto Marlies (AHL) on an
emergency basis.
March 28, 2023 The Maple Leafs loaned goaltender Joseph Woll to the Toronto Marlies (AHL).

INJURY REPORT
Noel Acciari Neck
Bobby McMann Knee
Victor Mete Lower Body (LTIR)
Jake Muzzin Neck (LTIR)
Ryan O’Reilly Broken Finger (LTIR)
Nick Robertson Shoulder (LTIR)

ALL-TIME VS. DETROIT RED WINGS:
First Matchup between Clubs: January 4, 1927 (Toronto 2 at Detroit 1)
All-Time Record: 299-282-93-5 (679 Games)
All-Time Record at Home: 178-108-47-3 (336 Games)
All-Time Record on the Road: 121-174-46-2 (343 Games)
Last Home Win vs. Opponent: January 7, 2023 (Toronto 4 vs. Detroit 1)

ACTIVE LEADERS VS. DETROIT RED WINGS:
Games Played: Wayne Simmonds (38), Morgan Rielly (33), John Tavares (32), Mark Giordano (32)
Goals: Auston Matthews (16), John Tavares (15), Mitch Marner (12)
Assists: John Tavares (30), Morgan Rielly (19), Auston Matthews (14), Wayne Simmonds (14)
Points: John Tavares (45), Auston Matthews (30), Mitch Marner (23), Morgan Rielly (23)
Penalty Minutes: Wayne Simmonds (51), Mark Giordano (24), Noel Acciari (21)

2022-23 AVERAGES
Points% GF/Game GA/Game PP% PK% SF/G SA/G FO%
Toronto .667 3.40 2.72 25.1 80.4 31.8 29.3 53.1
Detroit .500 2.91 3.29 21.3 79.1 28.6 30.4 49.2

THE MAN ADVANTAGE IN 2022-23
Power Play: 25.1%
Power Play Goal Leader: 15 – Tavares
Power Play Point Leader: 35 – Tavares (15G, 20A)
2021-22 Power Play: 63/231 (27.3%)

ON THE PK IN 2022-23
Penalty Kill: 80.4%
Shorthanded Goal Leader: 4 – Marner
Shorthanded Point Leader: 5 – Marner (4G, 1A)
2021-22 Penalty Kill: 192/234 (82.1%)

FAST FACTS
Sunday games 8th of 8 (2 home, 6 road)
Back-to-Backs played 12 of 14
Record in first game of back-to-back 8-5-0
Record in second game of back-to-back 8-3-1
April games 2nd of 8 (3 home, 5 road)

NHL Preview: Philadelphia Flyers (29-33-13) at Pittsburgh Penguins (37-29-10)

NHL Editor
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NHL Preview: Philadelphia Flyers (29-33-13) at Pittsburgh Penguins (37-29-10)

PHILADELPHIA FLYERS NOTES:

TONIGHT’S GAME
Philadelphia Flyers at Pittsburgh Penguins
PPG Paints Arena
TV: NBCSP+ | Radio: 93.3 WMMR

CURRENT INJURIES
PLAYER INJURY DATES GAMES MISSED
Cam Atkinson IR-upper body 9/25-present 75
Sean Couturier IR-back 9/19-present 75
Ryan Ellis LTIR-groin/hip/back 10/11-present 75
Carter Hart lower body 3/28-present 3
2022-23 TOTAL MAN GAMES LOST: 392

FLYERS VS. PENGUINS HEAD-TO-HEAD
FLYERS PENGUINS
163-100-43 ALL-TIME RECORD 113-153-40
103-37-12 HOME 72-57-25
60-63-31 ROAD 41-96-15
1-3-1 LAST 5 MEETINGS 4-1-0
3-5-2 LAST 10 MEETINGS 7-2-1
1,087 GOALS SCORED 944
24.0% POWER PLAY 23.5%
76.5% PENALTY KILL 76.0%
van Riemsdyk: 30 pts (13-17=30) in 52 GP
Konecny: 21 pts (10-11=21) in 25 GP
Hayes: 17 pts (8-9=17) in 32 GP
TEAM SCORING LEADERS Crosby: 122 pts (53-69=122) in 82 GP
Malkin: 83 pts (29-54=83) in 69 GP
Letang: 49 pts (10-39=49) in 62 GP
Sandstrom: 0-0-0, 0.00 GAA, 1.000 SV% in 1 GP
Ersson: Has not faced PIT
TEAM GOALTENDERS Jarry: 10-4-1, 2.87 GAA, .903 SV% in 16 GP
DeSmith: 2-2-0, 2.92 GAA, .903 SV% in 5 GP

2022-23 SEASON SERIES (ALL TIMES EASTERN)
November 25 Wells Fargo Center PIT (4), PHI (1)
March 11 PPG Paints Arena PIT (5), PHI (1)

RECENT TRANSACTIONS
4/1 – Recalled G Samuel Ersson from Lehigh Valley (AHL) on emergency conditions; Activated F Travis Konecny from Injured Reserve
3/31 – Loaned G Samuel Ersson to Lehigh Valley (AHL)

TEAM NOTES
QUICK STATS

  • Philadelphia saw its season-high seven-game point streak, 5-0-2, come to an end Saturday – their longest point streak since Dec. 10-30, 2021, also seven games.
  • Philadelphia scored two power-play goals March 30 at OTT – their fifth game of the season with multiple PPG. The Flyers have scored five PPG in their last eight games, ranking seventh in the NHL in PP% (29.4) since March 17.
  • The Philadelphia notched two season-high four-game win streaks this season: March 21-28 & Dec. 29-Jan. 5.
  • The Flyers have six players with 40-plus points this season, the first campaign of five-plus players with 40-plus points since 2019-20 (6).
  • Philadelphia tied its season-high six goals March 21 vs. FLA, including three second period goals in a span of 2:01.
    Per NHL Stats, the last time Philadelphia scored as many goals in 121 seconds or fewer was Feb. 8, 2020 at WSH (105 seconds).
  • The Flyers rank third in the NHL with 1,302 blocked shots and fourth with 2,065 hits.
  • Philadelphia has reached 2,000-plus hits in a season for the sixth time in franchise history and for the first since 2016-17. The franchise record is 2,511 hits set in 2014-15.
  • The Flyers tallied 40 hits Feb. 11 vs. NSH for their sixth game of 40-plus hits this season. The six games of 40-plus hits are the most in a single season since recording 13 games during the 2014-15 season.
  • Philadelphia recorded a franchise-best 59 hits Nov. 12 vs. OTT. The 59 hits are tied for the ninth-most in a regular season game in NHL history.
  • The Flyers’ 1,302 blocked shots this season are the fourth-most in franchise history. The franchise record is 1,317 set during the 2010-11 campaign.
  • Philadelphia registered 30 blocked shots Feb. 12 at CGY for its fifth game of the season with 30-plus blocked shots
    – the most 30-plus blocked shot games in a Flyers season since 2005-06. The Flyers tallied a season-high 32 blocked shots Oct. 27 vs. FLA.

RECENT TRANSACTIONS
4/1 – Recalled G Samuel Ersson from Lehigh Valley (AHL) on emergency conditions; Activated F Travis Konecny from Injured Reserve
3/31 – Loaned G Samuel Ersson to Lehigh Valley (AHL)

ON THE ROAD AGAIN

  • The Flyers begin a four-game road trip Sunday – tied for the longest road trip of the season.
  • Philadelphia will play five of its final seven regular season games on the road, March 30-April 13.
  • The Flyers are 8-8-2 in their last 18 road games, including a season-high five-game road win streak, Dec. 29-Jan. 14.
  • The Flyers have scored three-plus goals in 12 of their last 23 road games. Philadelphia is 9-3-5 on the road this season when scoring three-plus goals.

BACK-TO-BACKS

  • Saturday’s and Sunday’s games mark the Flyers’ 14th back-to-back set of 15 this season.
  • This set marks the final home-to-road back-to-backs this season:
  1. Nov. 25 vs. PIT (4-1 L); Nov. 26 at NYI (6-5 L)
  2. Jan. 8 vs. TOR (6-2 L); Jan. 9 at BUF (4-0 W)
  3. Feb. 24 vs. MTL (5-2 L); Feb. 25 at NJ (7-0 L)
  4. April 1 vs. BUF (6-3 L); April 2 at PIT
  • The Flyers are 5-7-2 in the first game of a back-to-back this season and 2-10-1 in the second.

PITTSBURGH PENGUINS NOTES:

LAST 2 GAMES
Apr. 1: Boston 4, Pittsburgh 3 – PPG Paints Arena
PIT Goals: Rust (2), Guentzel
Multiple Points: Rust (2G-1A)
Goalie: Jarry (31 saves, 35 shots)
Key Stats: Bryan Rust had a team-high three points (2G-1A) but Pittsburgh fell at home.
PP: 0-6
PK: 1-3

Mar. 30: Pittsburgh 2, Nashville 0 – PPG Paints Arena
PIT Goals: Zucker, Guentzel (PP)
Multiple Points: None
Goalie: Jarry (28 saves, 28 shots)
Key Stats: Jake Guentzel’s team-leading 34th goal helped Pittsburgh bring home the win.
PP: 1-4
PK: 3-3

INJURIES
Position Player Status Consecutive Games Missed Total Games Missed
F Nick Bonino Kidney 12 12
D Dmitry Kulikov Lower-Body 10 10
D Jan Rutta Undisclosed 8 23
D Marcus Pettersson Undisclosed 7 9
2022-23 Total Regular-Season Man-Games Lost: 195

RECENT TRANSACTIONS
Date Transaction
Mar. 31 D Thimo Nickl acquired from Anaheim in exchange for F Judd Caulfield.
Mar. 28 D Taylor Fedun re-assigned to WBS (AHL).
Mar. 23 F Filip Hallander re-assigned to WBS (AHL).
Mar. 23 G Dustin Tokarski recalled from WBS (AHL).

Pittsburgh’s All-Time Record vs. Flyers: 113-153-40
In Pittsburgh: 72-57-25
In Philadelphia: 41-96-15
OT Record vs. Flyers: 16-14-16
Shootout Record vs. Flames: 5-1

2022-23 Results: Pittsburgh is 2-0-0.
Penguins All-Time Point Leaders vs. FLYERS:
Mario Lemieux: 71 GP, 124 PTS (51G-73A)
Sidney Crosby: 82 GP, 122 PTS (53G-69A)
Evgeni Malkin: 69 GP, 83 PTS (29G-54A)

TONIGHT’S GAME

  • The Penguins conclude their three-game homestand as they take on the Philadelphia Flyers at PPG Paints Arena (TV: AT&T Sportsnet; Radio: 105.9 The X).
  • A win tonight would allow Pittsburgh to sweep the season series with Philadelphia for the first time since the 2017-18 campaign (4-0-0).
  • The Penguins are 8-3-1 in their last 12 games played against the Flyers.
  • Pittsburgh has points in eight of its last nine home games versus Philadelphia (7-1-1) dating back to Oct. 29, 2019.

MLB Preview: Cleveland Guardians (2-1) at Seattle Mariners (1-2)

MLB Editor
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MLB Preview: Cleveland Guardians (2-1) at Seattle Mariners (1-2)

CLEVELAND GUARDIANS NOTES:

SHUTOUT IN SEATTLE
The Guardians took a 2-1 series lead over the Mariners, smacking a pair of solo homers to back a dominant effort on the bump by AARON CIVALE and lock down a brisk 2-0 shutout of Seattle across two hours and four minutes on Saturday night at T-Mobile Park.

Civale needed just 80 pitches to slice through 7.0 scoreless frames on the way to his first victory of 2023 (2H, 1BB, 3SO)… the right-hander allowed just three baserunners and faced only 23 batters thanks to a 2nd-inning caught-stealing by batterymate CAM GALLAGHER and a dazzling double play in the 6th inning by ANDRÉS GIMÉNEZ, who would follow up his defensive gem with a solo shot in the 7th, drilling a 95mph, 2-1 offering from reliever Diego Castillo for a 2-0 Cleveland lead…only one of the final 13 batters Civale faced reached base on an infield-throwing error in the 6th…Logan Gilbert took the tough-luck loss for Seattle despite fanning 7 across a 6.0-inning quality start (4H, 1R-ER, 1BB, 7SO, 85 pitches)…lone blemish came on a 1-0 breaking ball in the 4th inning to JOSH NAYLOR, who deposited it into the center-field seats to break a scoreless tie.

JAMES KARINCHAK used a pair of strikeouts to work around a single and walk in a scoreless 8th…after a 1-2-3 9th in Friday’s 9-4 victory, EMMANUEL CLASE needed just 8 pitches to retire the side and record his first save of 2022.

WORK SMARTER, NOT HARDER
Aaron Civale worked thru 7.0 scoreless innings and threw only 80 pitches, the last Cleveland pitcher to work 7.0-or-more scoreless innings with 80 pitches-or-fewer was Carlos Carrasco on August 16, 2014 vs. Baltimore when he threw 7.0 shutout innings with 79 pitches…this was Civale’s second career start where he went 7.0-or-more IP with 0R/ER, with the previous outing on June 11, 2021 (also at Seattle) when he set a career-high with 11 strikeouts (8.0IP, 1H, 0R/ER, BB, 11SO)…it’s the first time a Cleveland starter has thrown 7.0-or-more IP within the first 3 team games since Justin Masterson on 3/31/2014 at Oakland in a 2-0 Opening Day win.

JOSH NAYLOR and ANDRÉS GIMÉNEZ hit Cleveland’s 1st and 2nd home runs of the season, respectively, Saturday night and provided the Guardians first multi-home run game of the season… in 2022, the Guards were 25-7 in games when they hit 2+ home runs…the club’s 32 multi-home run games ranked 14th in the AL and 28th in MLB…Naylor’s home run Saturday night traveled 430 feet, it was his longest home run since May 30, 2021, a 435 foot 3-run shot off Toronto’s Ross Stripling…Giménez sits T1st for most runs scored (4) in MLB with five others.

Despite amassing 5 total hits Saturday night, Cleveland came away with the win…the Guards are now 1-1 in games when they have 5-or fewer hits…in 2022, the club was 4-26 in games with 5-or-fewer hits.

Cleveland ranks T2nd in AL (T2nd in MLB) with Houston and Chicago-AL in stolen bases (4) behind Baltimore’s 10 steals in 2 games.

TODAY’S SERIES FINALE
The Guards are looking for their first series win of 2023 today at T-Mobile Park…Cleveland went 26-15-10 in series over 2022, turning in winning marks at home (12-7-6) and on the road (14-8-4)…they finished the 2022 season on an 8-1 run in series play starting on Sept. 5, with the lone series loss coming in a onegame stint against Chicago-AL on Sept. 15…with a win today, the Guardians would extend their current series win streak to six straight dating back to Sept. 16, 2022.

Cleveland went just 1-6 against Seattle in 2022, dropping both series to the M’s…the lone win came on the road at T-Mobile Park on Aug. 27…a series win today would mark the first time the Guards have accomplished the feat against Seattle since June 11-13, 2021 when they took two of three games at Progressive Field… the Guardians lead the all-time matchup between the two clubs, 236-194.

DON’T BLINK
Saturday night’s game lasted only 2 hours and 4 minutes… it’s the fastest game for Cleveland since a 1-0 May 18, 2011 at Chicago-AL (2 hours, 1 minute)…it was the fastest game in MLB this season under the new pace-of-play rules.

Cleveland has now played two of the four fastest games in MLB through the first three days of the season, the other game being a 2 hour and 14 minute contest on Opening Day…the club saw an average time of game of 2 hours and 30 minutes across 30 Cactus League contests this spring (exhibition vs. WBC Team Mexico excluded).

The average time of game across the MLB is currently 2 hours and 41 minutes, down 22 minutes from 2022 (3 hours, 3 minutes)… Cleveland is currently averaging 2 hours and 28 minutes through the first three games, down from 2 hours and 55 min in 2022.

PATIENCE AT THE PLATE
Through 3 games STEVEN KWAN leads MLB in pitches seen at 72, ahead of Houston’s Kyle Tucker at 64…across 14 at-bats, Kwan is currently seeing 5.14 pitches per plate appearance, ranking 4th in the AL and 7th in MLB.

Kwan finished 18th overall in pitches seen in MLB in 2022 (2,643), joining teammate José Ramírez (13th, 2,742) as the two Guardians among top 25 in MLB in pitches faced…he finished 15th overall in MLB (4th in AL) in pitches per plate appearance in 2022 (4.14 pitches/PA).

LOOKING AHEAD
After today’s contest, the Guardians will head south for a 3-game set against the Oakland Athletics before returning to Progressive Field for the first homestand of the season…the Guardians will play their Home Opener on Friday, April 7 against Seattle in the first game of a 3-game series, then face the New York Yankees for a 3-game set from April 10-12.

TODAY’S STARTER – 47 CAL QUANTRILL RHP

TODAY’S START
Makes his regular season debut this afternoon in the final game of this 4-game series at Seattle…finished 2022 with a 6-5 record and 3.53 ERA on the road…this is his first start since facing New York-AL in Game 4 of the ALDS (L, 5.0IP, 4H, 3R/ER, 1BB, 3SO)… he relied on efficiency in his starts last year as he ranked 1st in MLB with 28 starts of 80-99 pitches thrown (ARI’s Merrill Kelly had 25)… in Quantrill’s first start of the 2022 season, the Guardians provided 13 runs of support in a 17-3 blowout victory over the Royals…he would go on to have the highest run support of Guardians starters in 2022.

RECENT ROAD WARRIOR
After starting the 2022 campaign with a 1-5 record on the road, Quantrill bounced back to finish 6-5 away from home, with the Guardians winning each of the last six road contests he started… Quantrill totaled 32 strikeouts and received 4-or-more runs of support in each of those outings from July 22 until end of season… he enjoyed a 9.42 RSA on the road in that span, ranking 3rd in MLB and 2nd in the AL (behind ATL’s Kyle Wright and TOR’s Ross Stripling)…Quantrill posted a 5-0 record in six road starts post-AllStar break with a 2.31 ERA (9ER/35.1IP).

CAL AND HIS PALS
Quantrill received an MLB-best 6.33 runs of support-per-9.0 innings in 2022…over the course of a full season, his run support average was the highest by a qualified Cleveland pitcher since Jake Westbrook (6.73) and Paul Byrd (6.59) in 2006…Guardians hitters plated at four-or-more runs in 17 of his last 19 starts to end 2022…Quantrill’s 22 team wins in games he started ranked 4th in MLB and 3rd in the AL last season…Cleveland has scored 108 runs (6.35 runs/game) and held opponents to 48 runs (2.82 runs/ game) in his last 17 starts.

GOING STREAKING
Quantrill is riding an 11-game win streak (since July 11), marking the longest run of his career (prev high: 5G, Sept. 9, 2021-April 23, 2022) and marks the longest active pitcher win streak in MLB…he possesses the longest win streak of any Cleveland pitcher since Cliff Lee (11G, July 11-Sept. 17, 2008), who claimed the AL Cy Young Award that season.

ALL I DO IS WIN
Quantrill became just the 3rd pitcher in club history since 1901 to go 11-0-or-better over any 17-start span, according to Elias:

CLE PITCHERS TO GO 11-0-OR-BETTER OVER 17-START SPAN
Name Year Record
Gaylord Perry 1974 15-0
Johnny Allen 1937 14-0
Cal Quantrill 2022 11-0

CRAFTY CAL
Quantrill’s arsenal during the 2022 regular season was dominated by his two most effective moving pitches, as his sinker and cutter were thrown over 80% of the time…however, his two off-speed pitches (changeup and curveball) kept hitters guessing, as they were kept under a .200 batting average all season long.

QUANTRILL’S PITCH ARSENAL
Pitch Type % MPH Opp BA
Sinker 45.2 93.6 .291
Cutter 36.1 88.5 .235
Changeup 11.8 85.3 .190
Curveball 4.2 82.6 .194
4-Seam FB 2.8 93.3 .364

MARINER MINDSET
Today marks Quantrill’s 3rd career appearance (2nd start) against the Mariners, last facing Seattle on Sept. 4, 2022 (ND, 3.0IP, 5H, 3R/2ER, 1BB, 3SO)…his lone contest at T-Mobile Park as a Guardian was a relief appearance in 2021 (1.2IP, 2H, 0R, 0BB, 2SO).

In 8 starts vs. the AL West in 2022, he went 4-2 with a 3.62 ERA (13ER/47.0IP).

CACTUS LEAGUE/LAST START
Quantrill made five starts in Cactus League play, going 1-0 with a 4.32 ERA (8ER/16.2IP)…his last outing came on March 28 at Arizona where he held the D-backs to just one hit (ND, 4.2IP, 1R/ER, 4BB, 3SO)

SEATTLE MARINERS NOTES:

TODAY’S TILT…the Mariners play the finale game of a 4-game series (1-2) against the Cleveland Guardians today…Seattle will also welcome the Los Angeles Angels (3 G, 4/3-4/5) to T-Mobile Park on the homestand… today’s game will be televised live on ROOT SPORTS with Dave Sims and Mike Blowers on the call and broadcast live on Seattle Sports (710 AM) and Mariners.com with Rick Rizzs and Aaron Goldsmith on the call.

ODDS AND ENDS…the Mariners dropped last night’s contest to the Guardians by a 2-0 score…Seattle has dropped 2 in a row after winning on Opening Day…Seattle last season went 51-42 (.548) in the first half and 39-30 (.565) in the second half of the season…they went 46-35 (.568) at T-Mobile Park and 44-37 (.543) on the road…they went 34-22 (.607) in one-run games and 11-5 in extra innings…they went 27-24 in series openers.

• Kids Opening Day – All kids 14-and-under in attendance at today’s game will receive a Luis Castillo T-shirt.

• Bright and Early – Today marks the first day game of the 2023 season for Seattle…the Mariners went 37-27 (.578) during the day in 2022, compared to 53-45 (.541) at night..

• The Bullpen – Seattle’s bullpen is 1-0 with 1 save and a 1.54 ERA (2 ER, 11.2 IP) with 3 walks and 4 strikeouts through 2 games of action this season.

• Final Four – Ty France’s San Diego State Aztecs will take on the UConn Huskies in the NCAA Mens Basketball Championship on April 3 at 6:20 pm PT.

• The Skipper – Mariners manager Scott Servais is in his 8th season at the helm…going into tonight, Scott’s 529 wins as Seattle skipper rank 2nd in franchise history to Lou Piniella (840 wins).

THANOS…Mariners starter Marco Gonzales is 2-0 with a 1.93 ERA (3 ER, 14.0 IP) with 2 walks and 10 strikeouts in 3 career appearances (2 starts) against the Cleveland Guardians…Marco faced the Guardians 1 time during the 2022 season, tossing 6.0 innings and allowing 1 run with 1 walk and 4 strikeouts in a 3-1 Mariners win at T-Mobile Park on Aug. 25…Marco’s 1.93 ERA against the Guardians is his 2nd-lowest against any opponents during his career (min. 2 GS), trailing only a 1.29 ERA (2 ER, 14.0 IP) in 2 starts vs. the Dodgers.

FUN IN THE SUN…Julio Rodríguez hit .306 (57×186) with 7 doubles, 1 triple, 13 home runs and 31 RBI during day games in 2022…Julio’s .927 OPS during the day in 2022 ranked 5th-best in the Majors, trailing only Paul Goldschmidt (1.104), Aaron Judge (1.076), Freddie Freeman (1.030) and Jose Altuve (1.014)…Teoscar Hernández ranked 7th in MLB with a .881 OPS during the day in 2022 (min. 200 PA).

HOMESTAND HIGHLIGHTS…tickets still remain for the final four games of the current homestand, including today’s game (Kids Opening Day) with all kids 14-and-under receiving a Luis Castillo t-shirt…Monday, April 3 is Bark at the Park Ticket Special, while April 3, 4 and 5 are all Mariners Value Games…to purchase tickets for an upcoming game at T-Mobile Park, visit Mariners.com/Tickets.

TEAM DEBUTS… Gabe Speier made his Mariners debut in last night’s game and tossed a 1-2-3 8th inning after being recalled from Triple-A Tacoma earlier in the day….Cooper Hummel and Trevor Gott each made their Mariners debuts on Friday night…Hummel went 0-for-3 but reached base via hit-by-pitch, also recording a stolen base…Gott tossed 1.1 innings in relief, allowing 3 runs (0 earned runs) on 4 hits on 35 pitches (24 strikes)… Teoscar Hernández, Kolten Wong and Tommy La Stella all made their Mariners debuts in the starting lineup on Opening Day…when AJ Pollock first appears in a game with Seattle, it will mark his team debut.

YESTERDAY’S ROSTER MOVES…yesterday the Mariners recalled left-handed pitcher Gabe Speier (spy-urr) from Triple-A Tacoma…left-hander Robbie Ray was placed on the 15-day Injured List (left flexor strain)…Speier was claimed off waivers by the Mariners from Kansas City on Nov. 9, 2022 and the left-hander shined in 9 spring appearances with Seattle, recording 13 strikeouts and no walks across 8.2 innings of Cactus League action… Ray, who tossed 3.1 innings in his season debut on Friday night, threw 91 pitches (51 strikes) in his start…Ray led the Mariners with 212 strikeouts last season, which ranked 4th in the American League.

THE BATTERS…the Mariners 26-man roster includes 13 position players: catchers Tom Murphy and Cal Raleigh, catcher/outfielder Cooper Hummel, infielders J.P. Crawford, Ty France, Tommy La Stella, Eugenio Suárez and Kolten Wong, outfielders Teoscar Hernández, Jarred Kelenic, AJ Pollock and Julio Rodríguez and infielder/outfielder Sam Haggerty…outfielder Taylor Trammell (right hamate fracture) and infielder/outfielder Dylan Moore (left oblique muscle strain) begin the season on the 10-day Injured List.

THE PITCHERS…the Mariners active 26-man roster has 13 pitchers: right-handers Matt Brash, Diego Castillo, Luis Castillo, Matt Festa, Chris Flexen, Logan Gilbert, Trevor Gott, George Kirby, Andrés Muñoz, Penn Murfee and Paul Sewald and left-handers Marco Gonzales and Gabe Speier, who was recalled on Saturday.

FAMILIAR FACES…20 of the 26 players on the Mariners Opening Day roster had appeared in a game for Seattle last season, including 12 of 13 pitchers…the 6 players new to the organization are RHP Trevor Gott, C/OF Cooper Hummel, INF Tommy La Stella, INF Kolten Wong, OF Teoscar Hernández and OF AJ Pollock… the longest-tenured Seattle player is Marco Gonzales (team debut: Aug. 6, 2017)…the youngest player on the team is Julio Rodríguez (22 years, 91 days old on Opening Day)…the oldest player on the team is AJ Pollock (35 years, 115 days old on Opening Day).

TODAY’S MARINERS STARTER – LHP MARCO GONZALES
ABOUT GONZALES…
• 31-year-old left-hander is making his 1st start of the season, he is also making his 154th career appearance (146th career start) and his 4th career appearance against Cleveland (3rd start).

• Acquired by Seattle from St. Louis in exchange for minor league outfielder Tyler O’Neill on July 21, 2017.

• Native of Fort Collins, CO…attended Gonzaga University for 3 years (2011-13).

• Originally selected by Colorado in the 29th round of the 2010 MLB Draft out of Rocky Mountain High School (Fort Collins, CO) but did not sign…drafted and signed by the Cardinals with the 19th overall pick in the 2013 MLB Draft out of Gonzaga University…became the highest draft pick in the history of the Gonzaga baseball program.

• Made his MLB debut with Cardinals on June 25, 2014 at Colorado.

LAST TIME OUT…ND in last start on 10/5/22 vs. DET in the Mariners last game of the regular season…went 7.0 innings allowing 4 runs (3 ER) on 8 hits and 2 walks with 5 strikeouts.

HOME IS WHERE THE START IS…was 6-6 with a 3.58 ERA (41 ER, 103.0 IP) in 17 starts at T-Mobile Park in 2022, while going 4-9 with a 4.84 ERA (43 ER, 80.0 IP) in 15 road starts… held opponents to a .242 average (95×392) and a .708 OPS with 61 strikeouts at home while allowing a .305 average (99×325) and a .865 OPS with 42 strikeouts on the road.

BUILT DIFFERENT…had 8 different starts with 6+ innings pitched and 2-or-fewer strikeouts in 2022, which was the most such starts in the Majors…Cole Irvin-OAK ranked second with 5 such starts.

LET’S GET DEEP…The Mariners are 53-26 in starts when Gonzales goes 6.0 or more innings, compared to 21-41 when he tosses 5.2 innings or less over his career…when Gonzales tosses 7.0+ innings the Mariners are 25-9.

GOOD STRETCHES…over 11 starts from 5/13-7/7/22, he went 4-5 with a 3.00 ERA (23 ER, 69.0 IP)…over 8 starts from 5/29-7/7/22 he went 2-5 with a 2.82 ERA (16 ER, 51.0 IP).

STRIKEOUT-LESS IN SEATTLE…tossed 6.2 innings allowing 3 runs (2 ER) on 8 hits and 0 walks with 0 strikeouts on 7/7/22 vs. TOR…was 1 of only 8 instances of a starter tossing 6.0+ innings without a strikeout in 2022.

MILESTONES…has 597 strikeouts with the Mariners, which is tied with Matt Young (597) for 11th-most in franchise history…is scheduled to make his 139th career start (147th appearance) with the Mariners which trails Gil Meche (143 GS) for 11th-most in franchise history…Gonzales’ 57 wins are the 9th-most in club history, trailing Joel Piñiero’s 58.

OPENER x 3…started on Opening Day 3-consecutive years from 2019-21… became the 7th Mariners to start on Opening Day for at least 3-consecutive seasons, joining Mike Moore (1984-86), Mark Langston (1987-89), Randy Johnson (1992-1996), Freddy Garcia (2001-03), Jamie Moyer (2004-06) and Felix Hernandez (2009-18).

DEEP (START) IN THE HEART OF TEXAS…tossed the 3rd complete game of his career in a 3-1 Mariners win against Texas on Aug. 12, 2021…matched
his career highs in innings pitched (9.0), strikeouts (9) and surrendered the fewest hits in any of his 3 complete games (2)…the only run allowed came via a home run to Charlie Culberson with 2 outs in the 2nd inning…he faced the minimum in 8 of 9 innings.

PLAYOFF PROWESS…pitched in the 2014 Postseason with St. Louis…Went 2-1 with a 4.50 ERA (3 ER, 6.0 IP) with 4 strikeouts and…earned 2 wins in the NLDS vs. Los Angeles, becoming the 4th rookie in postseason history to win 2 games in the Division Series (also: Dave Righetti-NYY, 1981, Jaret Wright-CLE, 1997 and Francisco RodrÍguez-LAA, 2002).

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