NEW YORK – New York Rangers defenseman K’Andre Miller has been suspended for three games, without pay, for unsportsmanlike conduct in an incident involving Los Angeles Kings defenseman Drew Doughty during NHL Game No. 950 in New York on Sunday, Feb. 26, the National Hockey League’s Department of Player Safety announced today.
The incident occurred at 16:37 of the first period. Miller was assessed a match penalty.
Under the terms of the Collective Bargaining Agreement and, based on his average annual salary, Miller will forfeit $15,000. The money goes to the Players’ Emergency Assistance Fund.
New York, N.Y., – New York City Football Club (NYCFC) today announced that Midfielder James Sands has returned from his loan spell at Rangers FC and has signed a new contract through the 2027 season.
Sands will be available for the match against Chicago Fire, subject to receipt of his ITC.
Sporting Director David Lee said: “We are delighted to welcome James back to New York. He has gained valuable experience playing in Europe over the past 13 months, including playing in both the Europa League and helping Rangers to qualify for the UEFA Champions League group stage for the first time since 2010/11. I’d like to thank Ross Wilson and Rangers FC for their cooperation in allowing James to return now and wish them the best of luck for the remainder of their season. His time with Rangers has enhanced his development and we are excited for him now to return to New York and play a critical role for our Club in 2023 and beyond.
“It was a priority for us to try and ensure James returned to New York this season. Despite opportunities to continue his career in Europe, we are pleased that we’ve been able to reach an agreement on a new contract and convince James that this is the right place for his continued career progression. We know James’ ambition remains to play at the highest levels in Europe and we will continue to support him with his career aspirations.
“James is not only a special player; he is also a natural leader and fantastic role model, and with his added experience in Europe, we see him as a key player who will immediately help our team contend for more trophies. Since day one, our fans have been supportive of James and I’m sure that the return of one of their own and a player of his caliber will be a moment of celebration.”
Since arriving in Glasgow, the American midfielder has made 41 appearances tallying 2,495 minutes for the Club contributing with one goal in all competitions. During his tenure in Scotland, Sands won the 2022 Scottish Cup and featured in the 2021 Europa League final, as well as UEFA Champions League group play.
James Sands said: “I am excited to return to New York. As someone who grew up in New York and played for local youth teams and the NYCFC academy, it was and continues to be a great honor to represent this Club. NYCFC has had a tremendous impact on my development, the Club’s support of my initial step in Europe and continued understanding of my career goals has been very important to me.
“I would like to thank Rangers for the fantastic opportunity to play with a top-notch European team. Reaching the Europa League final, playing in the Champions League, and winning the Scottish Cup are just a few of the many positive memories that I will take away with me. The level of support from the Rangers’ fans is second to none.
“As I return to New York, I am looking forward to playing with some of my former teammates as well as many new ones. I’m excited about the Club’s vision for the future and hope I can use my experience abroad to help the Club achieve its goals and bring home some more silverware for our incredible fans.”
Sands became NYCFC’s first-ever Homegrown signing in 2017 making his debut against the Colorado Rapids. Since then, the midfielder made 76 appearances logging in 6,730 minutes and providing one assist for the ‘Boys in Blue’ across all competitions. Sands helped guide the team to its first piece of silverware in 2021 while also earning the NYCFC Young Player of the Year accolade and being named to the MLS All-Star Team.
Transaction: New York City Football Club sign Midfielder James Sands to a contract extension through 2027.
Name: James Sands Position: Midfielder Height: 6’1” Weight: 185 lbs Date of Birth: 07/06/2000 Age: 22 Hometown: Rye, NY
* The Senators, who scored six goals for the second consecutive day, were one of a handful of Eastern Conference teams currently in the hunt for a Wild Card spot to pick up two points Tuesday.
* Anze Kopitar recorded his second career four-goal game and led the Kings to their fourth multi-goal, third-period comeback win of the season – the most among all teams.
* Linus Ullmark (54 saves) posted the eighth 50-save performance by a goaltender this season – and the fifth this month – as 2022-23 produced an NHL rarity.
*A blockbuster deal sent Patrick Kane to his home state of New York and he will now don a Rangers jersey after spending more than 16 years in Chicago. Two days remain until the 2022-23 NHL Trade Deadline Presented by OFX, which is at 3 p.m. ET on Friday, March 3 – click here for the #NHLStats Pack.
The tightly-contested race for the final Wild Card position in the Eastern Conference took center stage Tuesday as the Senators (30-26-4, 64 points) and Panthers (30-26-6, 66 points) each picked up two points to keep pace with the Penguins (30-21-9, 69 points), who also earned a win:
* Tim Stützle (1-2—3) became the ninth different player in Senators history to score on a penalty shot as Ottawa found the back of the net four times in the first period en route to its second consecutive six-goal game. Stützle netted his team-leading 28th goal of the season (28-35—63 in 56 GP) and 62nd of his career – tying Marian Hossa (62 in 186 GP) for the second most by a Senators player age 21 or younger. Martin Havlat (65 in 212 GP) is the only such skater with more.
* Matthew Tkachuk (0-1—1)factored on the winning goal to help the Panthers snap the Sunshine State-rival Lightning’s franchise-record home point streak at 16 games. Tkachuk boosted his totals with Florida to 28-51—79 in 59 games and sits four points shy of passing Sam Reinhart (33-49—82 in 78 GP) for the most by a player in their first season with the franchise.
* Sidney Crosby tied the game more than halfway through the third period and Jason Zucker scored the go-ahead marker with 1:39 remaining in regulation as Pittsburgh earned its sixth third-period comeback win of the season. The Penguins are no strangers to go-ahead goals in the final two minutes of regulation in Nashville – Patric Hornqvist scored with 1:35 remaining in Game 6 of the 2017 Stanley Cup Final to help Pittsburgh win its second straight championship.
DUELLING FOUR-POINT PERFORMANCES SHINE IN BACK-AND-FORTH AFFAIR IN WINNIPEG
Josh Morrissey (2-2—4) helped the Jets (35-24-2, 72 points) produce multiple two-goal leads but Anze Kopitar (4-0—4) netted his second career four-goal game to guide the Kings to their NHL-best fourth multi-goal, third-period comeback win of the season.
* Tuesday marked just the fifth time in franchise history – and first on the road – the Kings have erased multiple deficits of two or more goals to win following Dec. 28, 1993 (vs. VAN), Dec. 21, 1988 (vs. MNS), March 20, 1982 (vs. PIT) and Oct. 27, 1981 (vs. QUE).
* Kopitar (35 years, 188 days), who joined Alex Ovechkin (4x) and Patrice Bergeron (2x) as the third active player with multiple four-goal games (also 4-0—4 on March 22, 2018), matched the franchise record for most in a contest and became the oldest player in franchise history with a four-goal outing ahead of longtime teammate Dustin Brown (4-0—4 on April 5, 2018: 33 years, 152 days).
* Drew Doughty (0-2—2), the captain’s teammate since 2008-09, assisted on Kopitar’s first and third goals of the evening and have now factored on the same goal 284 times – surpassing Kris Letang and Sidney Crosby (282) for the most by an active forward-defenseman duo.
* Morrissey’s performance, which included two goals in a span of 1:43, propelled him to the first 50-assist campaign by a defenseman in Jets/Thrashers history as well as matching the franchise record for points in a game by a blueliner –a feat previously accomplished by Toby Enstrom (2-2—4 on Dec. 20, 2010), Jaroslav Modry (1-3—4 on Dec. 26, 2005) and Dustin Byfuglien (1-3—4 on Nov. 28, 2010 & April 7, 2016).
ULLMARK RISES TO THE OCCASION AGAIN FOLLOWING GOALIE GOAL
* Ullmark made a career-high 54 saves and registered the most on record by a Bruins goaltender (since 1955-56 when shots on goal began being tracked), besting Tim Thomas (51 saves on March 1, 2007). Of note, Boston has featured one instance of a netminder making more saves in the Stanley Cup Playoffs: Tuukka Rask (59 saves in Game 1 of 2013 SCF).
Trades were aplenty three days ahead of the 2022-23 NHL Trade Deadline Presented by OFX (3 p.m. ET on Friday, March 3), highlighted by a blockbuster trade that sent Patrick Kane to his home state of New York after spending more than 16 years in Chicago. The Rangers are receiving one of three players in NHL history to win at least three Stanley Cups, a Conn Smythe Trophy, an Art Ross Trophy, a Hart Memorial Trophy and a Calder Memorial Trophy (also Bryan Trottier & Evgeni Malkin).
All of the deals around the League can be found on NHL.com’s 2022-23 Trade Tracker, but here are some of the other trades that took place Tuesday:
DIVISION LEADERS CLASH IN SECOND GAME OF TNT DOUBLEHEADER
The Metropolitan Division-leading Hurricanes (39-11-8, 86 points) have their sights set on their 40th win of the season when they travel to Vegas to clash with the Pacific Division-leading Golden Knights (35-19, 76 points) in the second game of a doubleheader on TNT. The Rangers (34-17-9, 77 points) and Flyers (23-28-10, 56 points) get the action going earlier in the evening.
AVALANCHE LOOK TO CONTINUE CLIMB UP WESTERN CONFERENCE STANDINGS The Avalanche (34-19-5, 73 points) enter their Wednesday contest with wins in each of their past six games, a 15-6-2 record since the beginning of the calendar year and an opportunity to move into first place in the Central Division. Colorado (19-13-3, 41 points) rang in the new year 11 points behind Dallas (23-9-6, 52 points) – also in action tonight – for top spot and now find themselves two points behind the Stars.
* Nathan MacKinnon (22-49— 71 in 47 GP) has been the catalyst of the Avalanche offense as of late, which includes an active eight-game point streak (8-8—16 in 8 GP) and multiple points in six straight games from Feb. 11-24. Additionally, MacKinnon’s 37 points since Jan. 1 (14-23—37 in 23 GP) are the second most among all players through that span and trail only Connor McDavid (18-25—43 in 23 GP).
The following are the NFL transactions for Tuesday, February 28. Transactions will be published each day after they are circulated to NFL clubs. This public version will include waiver requests, assignments via waivers, terminations, free agent signings, reserve list and practice squad additions and deletions, and trades.
WAIVER SYSTEM TRANSACTIONS
WAIVER REQUESTS (All are NO RECALL)
BALTIMORE
Person, Ricky
RB
North Carolina State
From Reserve/Left Squad
CINCINNATI
Hubert, Wyatt
DE
Kansas State
From Reserve/Retired
CLAIMING DEADLINE: 4:00 p.m., N.Y. Time, Wednesday, 3/1/23
Damian Lillard had his lowest point total in a game in more than five weeks, one game after putting up the most points of his career.
When the Trail Blazers play host to the New Orleans Pelicans on Wednesday night, the Portland star will attempt to regain his scoring prowess.
In Sunday’s 131-114 win over the Houston Rockets, Lillard scored a career-high 71 points. However, in Tuesday’s 123-105 road loss to the Golden State Warriors, Lillard only managed 25 points.
Lillard scored 19 points in the first half in San Francisco, when Portland held a 23-point lead before taking a 65-48 halftime lead. However, he only scored six points in the second half as the Trail Blazers were outscored 75-40 and were being pursued by multiple defenders.
After netting 13 treys against Houston, which tied him for the second most in NBA history, Lillard was just 2 of 7 from behind the arc. However, for the 22nd time in a row, he scored at least 20 points.
For the sixth time in nine games, the Trail Blazers lost because they had a lot of problems in the second half.
Lillard and CJ McCollum will face off against each other for the first time on the court on Wednesday. Before McCollum was acquired by the Pelicans in a deal that took place more than a year ago, the two close friends manned the starting backcourt for six and a half seasons.
When the teams played twice last season following the trade, Lillard was out with an abdominal injury that ended the season. Additionally, Lillard did not play in Portland’s 106-95 victory in New Orleans on November 10 in the season opener. The Trail Blazers were playing in their second game of a back-to-back, and Lillard had just returned from a calf injury.
That night, Portland’s Jerami Grant scored 27 points, while the Pelicans’ Zion Williamson scored 29. After averaging 24 points in each of his previous two games against the Trail Blazers, McCollum only managed to score 13.
Williamson hasn’t played for the Pelicans since January 2 due to a sore hamstring. While he is out, New Orleans is just 7-18.
Additionally, the Pelicans will be without forward Larry Nance Jr. (ankle) and guard Jose Alvarado (lower leg). Both guard Josh Richardson (quadriceps) and center Jonas Valanciunas (calf) are listed as questionable.
The Pelicans are currently one half-game behind Portland for the final play-in berth in the Western Conference and have lost four of their last five games.
This is New Orleans’ sixth game in a series in which seven of eight games are played on the road.
The Pelicans failed to make the most of their one home game, falling to the Orlando Magic 101-93 on Monday night.
Brandon Ingram of New Orleans scored 25 points against Orlando, making it his eighth time in nine games that he has scored at least 25 points.
LeBron James, a superstar player for the Los Angeles Lakers, became the NBA’s all-time leading scorer when the Oklahoma City Thunder and Los Angeles Lakers met for the first time three weeks ago.
When the two teams meet on Wednesday night in Oklahoma City, James will not be with the Lakers.
In Sunday’s victory over the Mavericks, James hurt his right foot and is expected to miss several weeks.
The Lakers lost 121-109 to Memphis on Tuesday, their first game without James.
The Lakers are one game out of a play-in spot going into Wednesday’s game. The Lakers are half a game ahead of the Thunder.
After winning three consecutive games, the Lakers lost on Tuesday. Austin Reaves contributed 17 points, and Anthony Davis and Lonnie Walker IV combined for 49 points to lead the scoring.
Memphis only forced six turnovers while Los Angeles turned the ball over 26 times.
The Lakers will play their final three games of a three-game road trip on Wednesday. They will then return to Los Angeles to play their next five games and 10 of their next 12 games at home.
The Lakers are still without James and D’Angelo Russell, who is expected to miss his third game in a row due to a sprained right ankle.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the Thunder’s best player, will also be absent.
Gilgeous-Alexander entered the league’s health and safety protocol on Tuesday after missing three games in a row due to an abdominal strain and soreness in his right ankle.
Gilgeous-Alexander scored 30 points in the Thunder’s 133-130 Oklahoma City victory over the Lakers on February 7 despite James taking center stage. Thunder rookie Jalen Williams also had a big game against the Lakers, scoring 25 points. Beginning with the victory in Los Angeles, Williams has scored an average of 18.3 points per game in his first eight games. In his first 49 games, he was scoring an average of 11.7 points per game.
Since the All-Star break, the Thunder have allowed at least 120 points in each of their first four games.
This season, the teams will play each other three times, the second of those times coming on Wednesday. On March 24, the show will come to an end in Los Angeles.
In their most recent outing, the Milwaukee Bucks started slowly but eventually found their feet and extended their winning streak to 15 games.
When they take on the Orlando Magic on Wednesday night, the Bucks, who lead the NBA, will try to get off to a faster start.
On Tuesday, Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 33 points and grabbed 15 rebounds as Milwaukee defeated the Brooklyn Nets 118-104. For the Bucks, who overcame a 15-point deficit by outscoring the Nets 66-42 in the second half, the two-time NBA MVP made 15 of 27 shots from the floor.
Khris Middleton, a reserve for Milwaukee, scored 18 points and had six assists, while Jrue Holiday scored 14 points and had eight, respectively. The Bucks’ current winning streak is the fourth longest in the franchise’s history, and it is only five wins short of matching the team’s winning streak from 1970 to 1971.
Milwaukee returns to its home turf, where it has won 10 games in a row and 26 of 31 games overall. The Charlotte Hornets defeated the Bucks 138-109 on Jan. 6 at Fiserv Forum.
In Milwaukee’s 109-102 victory over Orlando on Dec. 5, Antetokounmpo scored 34 points and grabbed 13 rebounds, while Holiday added 17 points, 10 assists, and 8 rebounds.
Franz Wagner led the Magic with 25 points in that game, and rookie Paolo Banchero led with 20 points, 12 rebounds, and 7 assists.
In the second half of Orlando’s 101-93 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans on Monday, Banchero scored 20 of his 29 points, including three mid-range jumpers and two free throws in the final four minutes. He also helped set up Wagner’s floater, which clinched the victory with 24.2 seconds left.
Banchero also credited the focus on his team’s side of the court. After all, in eight of their past twelve games, the Magic have held their opponent to fewer than 110 points.
Jonathan Isaac could make his Orlando return to the lineup on Wednesday. After missing the previous two games because of a strained right hamstring, Isaac is listed as questionable to face Milwaukee.
The Memphis Grizzlies have performed admirably away from the FedExForum throughout this season, despite how well they have done at home.
On Wednesday night, the Grizzlies will begin a four-game road trip with a matchup against the Houston Rockets, providing them with yet another opportunity to improve their road record.
On the road, the Grizzlies are 11-18, but they are 26-5 at home, where they beat the Los Angeles Lakers 121-109 on Tuesday. Before superstar Ja Morant took over, Memphis was three points behind at the half.
Memphis, which has won five of its last seven games, got 10 rebounds and 10 assists from Morant, who scored 28 of his 39 points in the third quarter.
In the victory, Xavier Tillman continued to impress, scoring 18 points and grabbing 11 rebounds. Jaren Jackson Jr. and Desmond Bane each scored 16 points.
In his three starts in place of injured center Steven Adams, Tillman has averaged 12.7 points and 10.0 rebounds.
After being out since late January with a PCL sprain in his right knee, Adams, who is averaging 8.6 points and 11.5 rebounds, may be close to returning.
Six of the last seven meetings with Houston have been won by the Grizzlies, including a 129-122 victory on Oct. 21.
After losing to the Denver Nuggets on Tuesday by a score of 133-112, the Rockets are now 10 games down. One game after allowing Damian Lillard to score a career-high 71 points in a loss to the Portland Trail Blazers, Houston fell behind by as much as 26 points.
The play of leading scorer Jalen Green, who returned after missing two games with a groin strain, was one bright spot for Houston against Denver. In just 19 minutes, Green scored 17 points and had five assists.
As the season nears its end, the professional in his second year stated that his objectives are straightforward.
The anticipated return of guard Kevin Porter Jr., who has been out since January 11 with a bruised toe, should give Houston a boost on Wednesday.
Tari Eason, a rookie, is one of several promising building blocks on the team’s young roster. In the loss to Denver on Tuesday, the 6-foot-8 forward scored 17 points and grabbed 12 rebounds.
The Rockets are still focused on achieving their long-term objectives, despite losing 30 of their last 34 games.
The Brooklyn Nets’ rise to NBA title contention included a prolonged period of dominance over their closest rival.
There may not be a better time than right now for the upcoming New York Knicks to begin writing a script of their own.
When the Knicks play Brooklyn on Wednesday night in the final game of the regular season between the two teams, they will want to continue their upswing and put more distance between themselves and the Nets.
Monday, the Knicks defeated the visiting Boston Celtics 109-94 to record their sixth victory in a row.
After losing 118-104 to the visiting Milwaukee Bucks on Tuesday, the Nets will play a back-to-back set.
The Knicks moved past the Nets into fifth place in the Eastern Conference with their win on Monday, which brought an exciting month to a close. Brooklyn is one game behind New York and one and a half games ahead of the seventh-place Miami Heat, which holds the final playoff spot that is guaranteed.
The Knicks went 9-2 in February, losing only to the host Philadelphia 76ers (119-108) and the Los Angeles Clippers (134-128 in overtime).
The Nets, whose nine-game winning streak in the Big Apple rivalry came to an end on Feb. 13 with a road loss of 124-106, have been the sole opponents on New York’s winning streak, which has been built entirely against teams that will enter Wednesday in a playoff or play-in tournament spot.
Over the past seven weeks, the Nets’ potential for a championship run has vanished. Brooklyn has gone 7-14 since reaching a season-high 14 games over.500 on January 8, when it traded Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant to complete the dismantling of its potential super team.
The Nets’ 2021 Eastern Conference semifinal defeat to the eventual NBA champion Bucks in seven games served as multiple reminders of what could have been. By making a game-tying jumper with his foot on the 3-point arc in Game 7, Durant forced overtime.
On Tuesday, the Nets took a 76-66 lead with just under seven minutes left in the third quarter thanks to a 10-0 run by Mikal Bridges, one of four starters Brooklyn got in the huge trades for Irving and Durant.
However, in a period-ending 25-9 run, the Bucks’ big three of Giannis Antetokounmpo, Jrue Holiday, and Khris Middleton scored 19 points together. Milwaukee won for the 15th time in a row, holding a lead of double digits for the final 8:56.
The outcome of the Chicago Bulls vs. Detroit Pistons game remains the same regardless of where they play.
13 times in a row, Detroit has lost to its Central Division rival, most recently in Paris. When the Pistons take on Chicago on Wednesday, they will try to end that long run.
As recently as the 2018–19 season, Detroit prevailed in the series. That season, the Pistons won seven straight games against the Bulls, winning the four-game series.
The previous three seasons, Chicago won all three series. Additionally, the Bulls have won the first two games this season: On December 30, scores were 132-118 in Chicago and 126-108 in Paris. The teams will play one more time after the game on Wednesday, in the regular-season finale against Chicago on April 9.
The Pistons’ challenge this season is to win against any team. With a 15-47 record, they are last in the Eastern Conference and have lost five straight.
In Monday’s 117-106 road loss to the Charlotte Hornets, Detroit was without four starters. Bojan Bogdanovic, the team’s leading scorer, and big men Jalen Duren and Isaiah Stewart both missed time with various injuries. Jaden Ivey, a point guard, missed the game for personal reasons, and forward Isaiah Livers, a forward, missed the second half with a left ankle sprain.
On Wednesday, Bogdanovic and Ivey are expected to play again. Livers was listed as doubtful, and Duran and Stewart will once more sit out.
The Hornets outscored the Pistons 41-21 in the first quarter, shooting 51.8 percent from the field, and took control from the start.
On three-point tries, Detroit shot 11.5% (on three of 26 attempts).
At the trade deadline, Golden State Warriors center James Wiseman was acquired by Detroit. He scored 23 points and grabbed seven rebounds to lead the improvised starting lineup. Additionally, reserve Hamidou Diallo scored 23 points.
In his second game since fracturing his hand, Marvin Bagley III had 21 points and 12 rebounds to go along with a solid bench performance. In his first game back, he scored 21 points and grabbed 18 rebounds against the Toronto Raptors on Saturday.
Chicago will conclude a set of back-to-back performances. On Tuesday, the Bulls fell to Toronto 104-98, committing 20 turnovers that resulted in 21 Raptors points. Chicago had six offensive rebounds, while Toronto had 19 as well.
The Bulls were led by Nikola Vucevic, who scored 23 points. Zach LaVine scored 17 points, seven fewer than his season average, and DeMar DeRozan scored just 13 points, 12 fewer than his average.
Chicago didn’t get as many chances to score because it was outrebounded 47-35.
