ap Page 2 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

Cole Caufield scores 50th goal; Canadiens tally late to edge Lightning
Jaraj Slafkovsky scored with 1:04 remaining in the third period and the host Montreal Canadiens edged the Tampa Bay Lightning 2-1 on Thursday night.,Nick Suzuki intercepted a pass behind the net and passed in front to Slafkovsky, who knocked it in from in front of the crease. The goal was No. 30 of ...

Colten Ellis, Sabres, blank Blue Jackets to stay atop Atlantic Division
Colten Ellis made 37 saves for his first career shutout in the host Buffalo Sabres' 5-0 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets on Thursday night.,Josh Doan had two goals and Peyton Krebs, Jack Quinn and defenseman and captain Rasmus Dahlin also scored for the Sabres (49-23-8, 106 points), who won their ...

Senators tighten grip on playoff spot with win over Panthers
Fabian Zetterlund scored twice, Jake Sanderson had two assists and Linus Ullmark made 18 saves as the Ottawa Senators inched closer to a playoff berth with a 5-1 victory over the visiting Florida Panthers on Thursday.,Drake Batherson, Artem Zub and Claude Giroux also scored for Ottawa (42-27-10, 94 ...

Obi Toppin's big game guides Pacers past Nets in also-ran matchup
Reserve Obi Toppin collected a season-high 26 points and grabbed nine rebounds as the Indiana Pacers seized control in the first quarter and rolled to an 123-94 victory over the Brooklyn Nets on Thursday in New York.,The game featured teams with the NBA's second- and third-worst records.,The Pacers ...

Brandon Ingram nets 38 as Raptors sweep four games from Heat
Brandon Ingram scored 23 of his 38 points in the first half Thursday night and the Toronto Raptors defeated the visiting Miami Heat 128-114.,The Raptors (45-35) swept the four-game season series with the Heat (41-39) and moved one-half game ahead of Orlando and into sixth place in the Eastern Confer...

Penguins use flurry to down Devils, return to playoffs
Tommy Novak and Egor Chinakhov scored nine seconds apart for the Pittsburgh Penguins, who clinched a playoff spot Thursday with a 5-2 victory over the New Jersey Devils in Newark, N.J.,Bryan Rust, Evgeni Malkin and Erik Karlsson also scored for the Penguins (41-22-16, 98 points). Chinakhov and Sidne...

Tre Jones helps Bulls beat Wizards for second time in 3 days
Tre Jones scored 31 points, Collin Sexton had 27 and Leonard Miller recorded a career-high 26, fueling the visiting Chicago Bulls to a 119-108 victory over the Washington Wizards on Thursday.,Jones sank 9 of 14 shots from the floor and all 12 of his attempts from the free-throw line for the Bulls (3...

Islanders bombard Maple Leafs to secure crucial win
The New York Islanders secured a sorely needed two points with a 5-3 win over the visiting Toronto Maple Leafs in their first game with Peter DeBoer as head coach.,Matthew Schaefer put the Islanders (43-31-5, 91 points) back in the lead after Toronto came back from 2-0 to tie it in the second period...

Daniel Hauser, Wisconsin edge North Dakota to reach Frozen Four final
Wisconsin scored twice in a 27-second span in the first period, and Daniel Hauser made 21 saves en route to a 2-1 win over North Dakota in Thursday's first Frozen Four semifinal in Las Vegas.,Simon Tassy and Ryan Botterill netted the quick-fire goals for the Badgers (24-12-2), who shrugged off North...

Rory McIlroy tied for lead to begin Masters defense
AUGUSTA, Ga. -- Rory McIlroy began the defense of his first Masters title with a 5-under-par 67 that gave him a share of the afternoon lead with Sam Burns at Augusta National on Thursday. ,It is only the third time in 18 Masters starts that McIlroy has broken 70 in the first round, and the second-lo...

Twins make clutch plays, add to Tigers' losing skid
Brooks Lee pulled a two-run single through the right side of the infield, and the Minnesota Twins held on for a 3-1 win over the Detroit Tigers on Thursday afternoon in Minneapolis.,Josh Bell went 3-for-4 and hit a solo home run for Minnesota, which completed a four-game sweep over the Tigers.,Gleyb...

Austrian teen Lilli Tagger stuns No. 3 Liudmila Samsonova in Linz
Local wild-card competitor Lilli Tagger pulled off a 6-2, 7-6 (11) defeat of No. 3 Liudmila Samsonova of Russia on Thursday to advance to the quarterfinals of the Upper Austria Ladies Linz in Linz, Austria.,Tagger, who turned 18 in February, converted three of five break-point opportunities while wi...

Athletics' Jeffrey Springs dominates Yanks in 1-hit shutout
Jeffrey Springs allowed one hit in seven outstanding innings to lead to the visiting Athletics to a 1-0 victory over the New York Yankees on Thursday afternoon.,Springs (2-0) took a no-hit bid into the seventh before Ben Rice cleanly singled to right field following a one-out walk to Giancarlo Stant...

Jannik Sinner sees record set streak snapped, advances in Monte Carlo
No. 2 Jannik Sinner saw his record streak of consecutive sets won at ATP Masters 1000 events snapped at 37, but the Italian still managed to beat Czech competitor Tomas Machac 6-1, 6-7 (3), 6-3 to advance to the quarterfinals of the Monte-Carlo Masters on Thursday.,Sinner, whose streak was 13 sets l...

76ers C Joel Embiid (appendicitis) out vs. Rockets
Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid has been diagnosed with appendicitis and will undergo surgery on Thursday afternoon in Houston, the team announced.,Embiid initially was ruled out for the game against the Rockets on Thursday night due to an illness.,The eighth-place 76ers (43-36) remain in a ti...

Marlins rough up Rhett Lowder to earn series split vs. Reds
Owen Caissie and Javier Sanoja combined for six hits and five RBIs to lead the host Miami Marlins to an 8-1 defeat of the Cincinnati Reds on Thursday afternoon, earning a split of the four-game set.,In a battle of former first-round picks, Miami's Max Meyer (1-0) allowed four hits, three walks and o...

Sam Burns torches par 5s to grab early Masters lead
AUGUSTA, Ga. -- Sam Burns took advantage of Augusta National's longest holes in posting a 5-under-par round of 67 to take the early first-round in the 90th edition of the Masters Tournament on Thursday.,Burns got his round rolling by sinking an 11-foot eagle putt on the par-5 second hole. After drop...

Red Bull engineer Gianpiero Lambiase to join McLaren
Red Bull head of racing Gianpiero Lambiase is leaving the team at the expiration of his contract to join Formula 1 rival McLaren.,Lambiase, 45, currently serves as the race engineer for four-time world champion Max Verstappen.,McLaren announced Thursday that Lambiase will become its chief racing off...

Nico Hoerner's big night helps Cubs clinch series vs. Rays
Nico Hoerner homered to highlight his three-hit performance and Michael Conforto drove in a pair, fueling the visiting Chicago Cubs to a 6-2 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays on Wednesday.,Hoerner added an RBI double during a five-run fifth inning for the Cubs, who recorded consecutive wins for the fi...

Peter DeBoer's Islanders rescue attempt begins vs. Maple Leafs
All eyes will be on Peter DeBoer as he takes his place behind the New York Islanders' bench for a crucial tilt against the visiting Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday night.,The Islanders (42-31-5, 89 points) parted ways on Sunday with Patrick Roy, their head coach of two-plus years, after an ill-timed...