As the NHL trade deadline approached, Canadiens left wing Max Pacioretty was among the notable players in the rumor mill. While the deadline passed with Pacioretty still in Montreal, the 29-year-old captain faces a murky future. Following the Feb. 26 deadline, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported Pacioretty was linked to the Kings, Wild and Panthers. While there was undeniable interest in the five-time 30-goal scorer, the asking price was high. It’s believed the Canadiens sought Tyler Toffoli from the Kings, Charlie Coyle from the Wild and Vincent Trocheck from the Panthers....

Nylander Saga Drawing To A Close The contract impasse between the Toronto Maple Leafs and restricted free agent William Nylander will reach some sort of resolution by the end of this week. Facing a 5 pm ET deadline on Dec. 1 to re-sign the 22-year-old winger, the Leafs face three options. They can get him under contract before Saturday, trade him to another club willing to meet his salary demands, or simply leave him unsigned and revisit contract negotiations next summer....

A 109-game slate showcases some of the top talent in the NHL, including the first regular-season matchup between the top two players selected in the 2019 NHL draft — the Devils’ Jack Hughes and the Rangers’ Kaapo Kakko — on Oct. 17. Nine days later it’ll be a rematch of the 2019 Stanley Cup Final when the Blues head to Boston; St. Louis will also raise its banner on Oct....

The NHL’s youth movement is in full swing. More than ever, the league’s youngest players double as its most vibrant, marketable stars — and there are plenty. Such an embarrassment of riches is on full display in Sporting News’ NHL 25 under 25 series, a comprehensive ranking of the best NHL players under the age of 25 heading into the 2018-19 season. Between Aug. 20-24, we’ll reveal our picks in increments of five, counting down from No....

The two Georgia running backs, who had just finished the 2016 season with a combined 1,970 rushing yards and 12 touchdowns, had a decision to make: Return to Athens, or test the NFL draft waters? So of course, Michel assumed the worst when he heard his friend and roommate say they needed to talk: Chubb would say he was declaring for the 2017 NFL Draft, leaving Michel to return as the lone veteran back for the Bulldogs in 2017....

Foles, who has been recovering from a broken collarbone, addressed the rumors for the first time in an appearance on “Pro Football Talk Live” on NBC Radio Thursday at the Super Bowl. MORE: SN All-Pro Team | Top 25 free agents | 2015 NFL Mock Draft Foles said that he was tuning out the noise. Asked if he thought he would be back as the starter in 2015, he said, “I plan on being back and being in Philly....

“With him, it’s how you treat people,” Smith said on Jan. 4. “No matter how people are treating you, you always treat everyone else with respect.” Saban will be treated with reverence after leading No. 1 Alabama to a 52-24 blowout victory against No. 3 Ohio State on Monday. That gave the 69-year-old coach a sixth national championship with the Crimson Tide, and seventh overall as a head coach. It also broke the record set by former Alabama coach Paul “Bear” Bryant....

Until that time comes, however, the Alabama coach is happy to use his team’s success in that arena as a recruiting tool — as he did again in his Tuesday appearance at SEC Media Days at the College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta. Asked about how NIL deals are impacting the dynamic of college football, Saban was happy to drop a not-so-subtle hint as to how lucrative it is to play at Alabama:...

Young, the No. 2 overall player in the 2020 recruiting class per 247Sports’ Composite rankings — and the No. 1 overall quarterback, regardless of style — has already taken significant advantage of Name Image and Likeness deals, which the NCAA allowed to go into effect on July 1. Alabama coach Nick Saban on Tuesday detailed just how lucrative those NIL deals have been for his quarterback. Saban, speaking at the Texas High School Coach Association’s annual convention, said Young is nearing $1 million in NIL money....

The man who once compared himself to Prince and Michael Jackson is perhaps one of the most entertaining players in the NBA. Young, AKA “Swaggy P,” once said the reason he only has tattoos on his left arm is being the right one was for buckets. Win or lose, every minute talking to Young is eventful. Last night was no exception. After hitting what would be the go-ahead 30-footer to seal a 112-110 victory over San Antonio, he had a couple of thoughts about it....

The rapper surprised fans yesterday when she revealed her reason for not going to the Met Gala was because she is unvaccinated against coronavirus and didn’t want to get the jab specifically for the event, and wanted to do “more research.” Taking to Twitter, the “Anaconda” rapper told fans: “They want you to get vaccinated for the Met. if I get vaccinated it won’t for the Met. It’ll be once I feel I’ve done enough research....

“I have never seen anything quite like this before,” he told the broadcaster, saying he goes down to the beach on a regular basis. “I’ve never seen an organism that looked quite as fearsome as this.” Beiler said he initially thought it was some sort of jellyfish, but after closer inspection he realized it was something far more unusual. “It’s the stuff of nightmares—[its] mouth almost looked bloody,” he said....

Staff at the NIH voiced concerns in 2016 that EcoHealth Alliance (EHA)—which is at the center of the debate around whether COVID could have escaped from a lab— had planned experiments that could be classed as controversial “gain of function” research, the documents show. The documents were obtained via a Freedom of Information Act request by the anti-animal testing group White Coat Waste Project and published on Wednesday by The Daily Caller, which is described by the Columbia Journalism Review as a right-wing news outlet....

According to a report from Ben Standig and Rhiannon Walker of The Athletic, Nike is one of three major companies (including FedEx and PepsiCo) that are putting pressure on the team to change its name, which has been long-criticized as racist. The sports apparel company, which is the NFL’s official gameday uniform supplier, has every team listed on the left sidebar of Nike.com — except Washington. MORE: Five new name ideas for the Redskins...

Jokic was one of about a half-dozen Nuggets players who walked along the baseline toward an altercation under the basket between teammate Mason Plumlee and Jazz forward Derrick Favors in the first quarter. Plumlee and Favors were ejected. Jokic seemed to believe that the out-of-bounds area isn’t, well, out of bounds when it comes to such incidents. MORE: Nuggets G Isaiah Thomas hoping for mid-February return “I was not on the court....

Some bad ideas sound delightful — until they are implemented. In short, the baseball rule allows baseball prospects to be drafted out of high school and enter the professional game — almost without exception at the minor league level. Those who decide not to turn pro and choose to enter college may not be drafted again for another three years. MORE: NBA Draft grades for all 30 teams Mike Krzyzewski endorsed the baseball rule on his “Coach K Draft Special” radio show on Sirius/XM....

The new model will not bring any tangible improvements to performance or gameplay, as many were hoping for, but will instead have a bigger screen and a few other enhancements for the sake of player convenience. What Is the Nintendo Switch OLED Model? Unlike the PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X, the Switch OLED console is only an incremental upgrade over its predecessor and does not represent a next generation of the hardware....

There was his contempt for political “enemies” and his relish at the idea of sacking bureaucrats wholesale. “I want there to be no holdovers left,” he says about the Treasury. “The whole goddam bunch go out. .. You’re out, you’re out, you’re finished, you’re done, done, finished. Knock the hell out of there.” To which chief of staff H. R. (Bob) Haldeman gushes, “You’ll end up with one hell of a government....