Sports category, Page 1630
NHL reaches 7-year deal with Turner Sports, ending NBC run
The National Hockey League is coming to TNT. The league and Turner Sports on Tuesday announced a seven-year agreement that begins next season. The deal means NBC’s run of covering the league ends after after this season’s playoffs. NBC has broadcast games since 2005 and is in the final season...
West Virginia’s Derek Culver signs with agent, will enter NBA draft
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (AP) — All-Big 12 forward Derek Culver has decided to skip his senior season at West Virginia to enter the NBA draft. Culver announced Monday night on Instagram that he has signed with an agent. Culver was named to the all-Big 12 first team as a junior. The...
Alan Faneca chooses former Steelers teammate Hines Ward to present him for the Hall of Fame
Add another beloved Pittsburgh Steeler to this summer’s Hall of Fame ceremonies. Alan Faneca chose longtime former Steelers teammate Hines Ward to serve as his presenter for his Pro Football Hall of Fame induction in August. Before he became a six-time All Pro guard, Faneca and Ward were part of...
Mike Lange to make temporary return to Penguins broadcast
Mike Lange had homework to do Monday night. For a few nights, in fact. Having been on hiatus as a precaution because of the pandemic, Lange listened to his temporary replacement, Josh Getzoff, aptly handle the duties as the play-by-play radio broadcaster for the Penguins’ first 49 games of the...
On cusp of NFL career, ex-Pitt player Damar Hamlin enters new world of digital trading cards
Damar Hamlin can’t control when he will be drafted, which NFL team will pull the trigger or how long the process will take. But the former Pitt and Central Catholic defensive back said he’s more than ready to be a professional, and he’s acting that way off the field, too....
Shades of gray rare among Kentucky Derby favorites, winners
Chris Goodlett has walked around Churchill Downs many times since joining the Kentucky Derby Museum and heard admiring fans say to each other, “Oh, look at that beautiful gray horse.” Not many of those remarks have come while looking at the winner’s circle after the Derby. Essential Quality is expected...
Pitt tackle Carson Van Lynn opts to transfer, enters NCAA portal
Pitt lost some of its depth on the offensive line when tackle Carson Van Lynn placed his name in the NCAA transfer portal. I have nothing but love and immense pride in being a Pitt man. Pitt is a very special institution with coaches and staff who truly care about...
Mark Madden: Penguins will put Evgeni Malkin on top power play, but they shouldn’t
Before Evgeni Malkin got hurt, the Pittsburgh Penguins’ power play scored 15 times on 84 opportunities. That’s a conversion percentage of 17.8. With Malkin out, the power play is 16 for 50. That’s a percentage of 32.0. When Malkin rejoins the lineup, should he go back on the No. 1...
Deep cornerback class gives chance for Steelers to buck recent draft history
Hearing the names of cornerbacks taken by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the first four rounds of the NFL Draft over the past decade is enough to send shivers up the spine of any fan. It sounds like a roll call from a George Romero horror movie. There was Artie Burns...
Penguins’ success in face of adversity deserves praise. But should we change playoff expectations?
I write this column not so much as an opinion piece on the Pittsburgh Penguins. It’s more of a cathartic cry for help. A plea to Pens fans to help me surf through my complex, layered emotions as the 2021 regular season draws to a close. Because if you were...
First Call: Even if Devin Bush gets healthy, Steelers still may look to draft another Ryan Shazier; appreciating Tyson Alualu’s return
In Tuesday’s “First Call,” we go heavy on the Pittsburgh Steelers and the NFL Draft. Monday marked a happy anniversary in that regard. We look at why inside linebacker continues to make sense as a potential first-round option for the club and how Tyson Alualu bailed out the team by...
This Date in Sports History: April 27
1956 — Rocky Marciano retires as the undefeated heavyweight boxing champion. He finished with a 49-0 record, including six title defenses and 43 knockouts. 1960 — The Minneapolis Lakers announce they will relocate to Los Angeles. 1968 — Jimmy Ellis wins the heavyweight boxing title with a 15-round decision over...
Tim Benz: Best case yet for Kevin Colbert to draft a RB in 1st round … from Colbert himself
In most years, it’s a futile effort to attempt reading the tea leaves during the Pittsburgh Steelers pre-draft press conference with general manager Kevin Colbert and head coach Mike Tomlin. I’m not conspiratorial enough to think those two use that opportunity to intentionally float out misinformation. OK, maybe on occasion....
Seton Hill baseball win won’t count after Mercyhurst protest
Seton Hill baseball has an impressive record this season, but one of the Griffins’ wins was taken off the board Monday. The Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference announced that Mercyhurst played Saturday’s game against Seton Hill under protest and the Lakers’ objection to a reversed call was upheld by the league...
Dubai sheikh still chasing elusive Kentucky Derby victory
Winning major horse races around the world is the lifeblood of Godolphin, and there’s no bigger race than the Kentucky Derby. Getting his hands on the gold winner’s trophy on the first Saturday in May has been a decades-long quest for Godolphin founder Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, prime...
AP sources: Turner Sports gets rights to 2nd NHL package
Turner Sports is the surprise winner of the NHL’s second television package. The sides agreed on a seven-year contract that includes three Stanley Cup Finals, two people familiar with the deal told the Associated Press. The people spoke on condition of anonymity Monday because the contract had not been finalized....
Trainer Brad Cox seeks Kentucky Derby history as Louisville’s first winnerVideo
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Brad Cox smiles when talking about Churchill Downs and the Kentucky Derby, making it clear how important both are to the trainer. After all, he grew up a few blocks away from the historic track. Cox began working with horses at Churchill Downs as a teenager before...
Browns’ Baker Mayfield on recent UFO sighting: ‘I believe’
CLEVELAND — Baker Mayfield’s offseason has included running, lifting, getting a guaranteed $18 million and a celestial close encounter he won’t forget. Mayfield said he saw a UFO. Nothing has changed his mind. “I’m a firm believer in UFOs and Sasquatch,” Mayfield said with a smile Monday on a Zoom...
Westmoreland campus clippings: Pitt-Greensburg tennis smashing success
Turner Price plays singles and doubles for the Pitt-Greensburg men’s tennis team. He also likes to double up on awards. Price, a junior from Penn-Trafford, repeated as the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference Player of the Year and earned all-conference first-team honors at No. 1 singles after a strong spring season....
Buccaneers exercise 5-year option on DT Vita Vea
TAMPA, Fla. — The Tampa Bay Buccaneers exercised the fifth-year option on the contract defensive tackle Vita Vea signed as the 12th overall pick in the 2018 draft. The 6-foot-4, 347-pound tackle has started 29 of 34 regular-season games he’s played with the Bucs, compiling 7½ sacks and 19 quarterback...
Penguins Prospect Watch: Sam Poulin surges early in QMJHL postseasonVideo
A weekly look at how Penguins prospects and minor leaguers have fared over the past seven days: • In the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League’s (QMJHL) postseason, forward Sam Poulin had a power-play goal and an assist for the Val-d’Or Foreurs in a 7-2 home win against the Baie-Comeau Drakkar...
Kentucky Derby notes: Brooklyn Strong makes quick move
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Brooklyn Strong needed a few horses to drop out to make the Kentucky Derby and now needs to make it to Churchill Downs at the latest possible minute. The defection of trainer Brad Cox’s Caddo River on Sunday opened the door for Daniel Velasquez’s Brooklyn Strong to...
While remaining on covid-19 pause, Pitt baseball cancels weekend series with Northern Kentucky
For the second consecutive week, Pitt baseball canceled its three-game weekend series Monday due to the team remaining in covid-19 protocol. The Panthers were scheduled to play Northern Kentucky in nonconference games Friday, Saturday and Sunday at the Charles L. Cost Field. Pitt’s three-game series last weekend at No. 5...
Blackhawks’ Andrew Shaw retires after latest concussion
CHICAGO — Andrew Shaw was the scrappy “mutt” on a star-studded team, a gritty fan favorite who helped the Chicago Blackhawks win two Stanley Cups. Now, he is calling it a career. Shaw announced his retirement Monday on the advice of doctors after multiple concussions over the course of his...
Cowboys’ Sean Lee retires after 11 seasons
A football career defined by hundreds of tackles but also interrupted by several serious injuries came to an end Monday when Upper St. Clair native Sean Lee retired from the NFL after 11 seasons with the Dallas Cowboys. Lee announced his decision via a letter posted to the team’s website....
