w Page 16 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

Points at a premium as Kings host Predators twice in five days
The battle for the final wild-card spot in the Western Conference will continue on Thursday night when the Los Angeles Kings host the Nashville Predators.,Los Angeles defeated the visiting St. Louis Blues 2-1 in overtime on Wednesday night to leapfrog Nashville for the second wild card from the West...

Fueled by bottom of order, Royals vie for continued success vs. Twins
Kyle Isbel will look to continue his torrid stretch at the plate on Thursday afternoon as the host Kansas City Royals vie for a sweep of their three-game series with the Minnesota Twins.,Isbel totaled four hits in his first three games before collecting four more in Kansas City's 13-9 victory over M...

Sharks ride string of late-game heroics into encounter vs. Leafs
The San Jose Sharks are making a habit of winning games with late goals.,It doesn't matter to the Sharks how they are winning. They have high hopes that the next victory will come Thursday night when they host the Toronto Maple Leafs.,The Sharks (35-31-7, 77 points) came up with another rally in a 4...

With playoffs in sight, rested Wild set sights on Canucks
Minnesota did not get the assist it needed from the Anaheim Ducks or St. Louis Blues to clinch a playoff spot on the Wild's day off on Wednesday.,Instead, the Wild will have a chance to take matters into their own hands Thursday night.,Minnesota can punch a ticket to the postseason when it faces the...

Illinois State gets shot at No. 1 overall seed Auburn in NIT semis
After the disappointment of not hearing its named called on Selection Sunday to be part of the March Madness field, Auburn chose to play good basketball and focus on a championship.,The top overall seed in the NIT, the Tigers (20-16) can take one step closer to a title when they face Illinois State ...

Creighton, facing Rutgers, aims to extend Greg McDermott's tenure
After missing the NCAA Tournament for the first time in six seasons, Creighton coach Greg McDermott announced his retirement effective the end of the season.,Since the announcement, McDermott is devising a game plan he hopes will result in a few more wins. Creighton's next chance occurs Thursday in ...

WVU seniors face off with Stanford's freshman star in Crown opener
Senior-dominated West Virginia and freshman-led Stanford go head-to-head Thursday night when the College Basketball Crown Tournament continues in Las Vegas with its second day of quarterfinal matchups.,The second-year event pitting teams from the Southeastern Conference, Big 12, Big Ten and Big East...

Chasing Mammoth in wild-card race, Kraken out to trim deficit
The six-game trip the Seattle Kraken just completed was supposed to make or break their playoff chances.,It did neither.,Despite going just 1-3-2, the Kraken (32-30-11, 75 points) remain only three points out of the Western Conference's second and final wild-card spot entering a Thursday home game a...

Improving Blazers see play-in-positioning opportunity against Pelicans
Winners in seven of their past nine games, the Portland Trail Blazers look to continue their strong stretch run heading into the Western Conference play-in tournament when they host the New Orleans Pelicans on Thursday.,Portland (39-38) moved to the right side of .500 on Tuesday, when they led almos...

John Tortorella looks to build off debut as Golden Knights host Flames
Taking over a Vegas Golden Knights team whose season was quickly heading south, new head coach John Tortorella quickly stressed one major change.,Go north.,"Trying to get the right mindset, an aggressive mindset of playing north," Tortorella said.,Tortorella, who replaced Bruce Cassidy as head coach...

Second-half surge lifts Baylor over Minnesota in Crown quarterfinals
Tounde Yessoufou poured in 19 points and Obi Agbim added 17 as Baylor used a decisive run over the first six minutes of the second half to roll past Minnesota 67-48 on Wednesday in a College Basketball Crown quarterfinal game at Las Vegas.,The Bears (17-16) advance to play Oklahoma, a 90-86 winner o...

Sizzling teams, MVP candidates square off as Lakers face Thunder
Two of the NBA's hottest teams, each with players making a case for Most Valuable Player honors, face off Thursday when the Oklahoma City Thunder host the Los Angeles Lakers.,The Lakers (50-26) come in having won 13 of their past 14, including the past four in a row.,The Thunder (60-16) have won thr...

Oilers have found new gear as they seek fifth straight victory vs. Blackhawks
The Edmonton Oilers have seemingly fixed the kinks in their armor at the perfect time during a season filled with question marks.,The lack of depth and trustworthy goaltending options have continually been the topic of conversation when it came to the Oilers' struggles during the 2025-26 regular sea...

Close to a wild-card spot, Jets battle playoff-bound Stars
The Winnipeg Jets are one point out of the second Western Conference wild-card playoff spot as they prepare to face the host Dallas Stars on Thursday night.,The Jets (32-30-12, 76 points) have won four of their last five, including a 4-3 overtime road win over the Chicago Blackhawks on Tuesday night...

Caps must continue late surge vs. Devils to stay in playoff hunt
The Washington Capitals look to continue to gain ground in their pursuit of a playoff berth on Thursday when they visit the New Jersey Devils in Newark, N.J.,The Capitals (38-28-9, 85 points) have won three in a row and are 6-1-2 in their last nine games to move within three points of the Columbus B...

Jonathan India belts slam as Royals outslug Twins
Jonathan India belted his fifth career grand slam and Kyle Isbel also went deep among his four hits, lifting the host Kansas City Royals to a 13-9 victory over the Minnesota Twins on Wednesday.,Maikel Garcia drove in three runs as the Royals benefited from their Nos. 6-9 hitters -- India, Jac Caglia...

Penguins, Lightning hope to shake off erratic March in playoff push
As second-place teams having worked their way through an erratic March, the Pittsburgh Penguins and Tampa Bay Lightning will try to sharpen their respective games as the playoffs approach when they meet Thursday in Tampa.,The Penguins (38-21-16, 92 points), who have seven games remaining, went 8-6-3...

Timberwolves looking to avenge recent setback to Pistons
The Detroit Pistons clinched the Central Division title for the first time since 2008 on Tuesday. Now they are aiming to sew up the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference.,Detroit, which leads second-place Boston by four games in the East, can move closer to that goal when it hosts Minnesota on Thursd...

Hornets hope to take advantage of Suns' road woes
The Phoenix Suns and Charlotte Hornets are both within the NBA's play-in tournament category in their respective conferences.,So when they meet Thursday night in Charlotte, it's a chance to improve their status.,The Hornets (40-36), who have won six of their last eight games, are jockeying for posit...

Deadlocked Wings, Flyers face off in critical encounter
The Detroit Red Wings and Philadelphia Flyers failed to gain ground in the playoff race Tuesday, but they get another opportunity when the teams square off Thursday in Philadelphia.,Detroit (39-27-8, 86 points) and Philadelphia (37-25-12, 86 points) both trail the Columbus Blue Jackets by two points...