Super Bowl MVP Kenneth Walker, QBs Kyler Murray and Kirk Cousins are among top NFL free agents
The Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks found their starting quarterback in free agency last year, landing Sam Darnold. The New England Patriots went from worst to first in the AFC East after signing several key veterans who helped them reach the Super Bowl. Winning free agency doesn’t always translate into...
NASCAR, IndyCar partner for desert doubleheader
AVONDALE, Ariz. — Pato O’Ward wasn’t sold on the motorsports doubleheader this weekend at Phoenix Raceway because the IndyCar driver doesn’t like being “the support series” to NASCAR. Then he saw the television rating — 3.9 million viewers on Fox Sports for last week’s NASCAR race — and changed his...
Amid labor strife, Riverhounds open championship defense on road vs. rival Charleston
The euphoria and excitement of the Pittsburgh Riverhounds’ 2025 USL Championship run has been quite the ride — one that has carried the team into the season with its biggest offseason in club history. From the news of a $150M stadium expansion, to new kits with European designer Hummel as...
Penguins president Kyle Dubas stays the course at NHL trade deadline
The NHL’s trade deadline Friday was different for the Pittsburgh Penguins. It wasn’t like the previous two seasons, when the Penguins operated as sellers — jettisoning big parts of the roster such as Jake Guentzel or contributors such as Anthony Beauvillier — for the sake of building to the future....
Penguins re-sign goaltender Taylor Gauthier
The Pittsburgh Penguins re-signed goaltender Taylor Gauthier to a one-year, two-way contract for the remainder of the 2025-26 season. Opening the season on an American Hockey League (AHL) contract, Gauthier will carry a salary cap hit of $775,000 with his new deal. The Penguins, under former general manager Ron Hextall,...
Pitt players don pads for 1st time at spring practice
At the conclusion of Friday’s practice, Pitt football is now one week through spring ball, having completed three of 15 sessions that will lead into the annual Blue-Gold Spring Game on April 11. Friday marked the first time the Panthers were in shoulder pads this spring, allowing coach Pat Narduzzi...
Braxton Ashcraft proves sinker can be effective complement to slider as Pirates lose to Phillies
BRADENTON, Fla. — Braxton Ashcraft decided to flip the script on his pitch usage against the Philadelphia Phillies, throwing his sinker five times more than his four-seam fastball. The intention was for the sinker to provide a perfect complement to his bread-and-butter pitch, the slider, against a lineup loaded with...
Penguins acquire forward Elmer Soderblom from Red Wings
The Pittsburgh Penguins acquired forward Elmer Soderblom from the Detroit Red Wings in exchange for a third-round draft pick in 2026. Soderblom, 24, has played in 39 games this season and scored three points (two goals, one assist) while averaging 10:41 of ice time per contest, including 32 seconds during...
Steelers approach free agency flush with cap space — and plenty of needs
For the first time since 2006, a new Pittsburgh Steelers season is accompanied by a new coaching staff. And with that new season — officially, as per NFL parlance, the new league year — beginning next week, the accompanying start of free agency will see the Steelers undergo a significant...
Penguins briefly assign forward Avery Hayes to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton
Pittsburgh Penguins rookie forward Avery Hayes was briefly assigned to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League (AHL) on Friday before being formally recalled tot eh NHL roster. The team has not announced the transaction, but it was reflected on the AHL’s website. In reality, the maneuver was a paper transaction...
‘Mountainous’ Miami tackle Markel Bell has pre-draft visit with Steelers
Miami (Fla.) offensive tackle Markel Bell visited the Pittsburgh Steelers’ practice facility Friday as the team begins to host possible targets for the upcoming NFL Draft. Even among other linemen, Bell has massive size at 6-foot-9 and 346 pounds. He played two seasons for the Hurricanes, starting five games as...
Injured Penguins Sidney Crosby, Jack St. Ivany resume practicing
Injured Pittsburgh Penguins forward Sidney Crosby and defenseman Jack St. Ivany joined teammates for an optional practice session in Cranberry on Friday. Neither player was cleared for contact, though, the nature of the practice session was non-contact for all players according to Dan Muse. Both players are currently designated to...
Penguins forward Evgeni Malkin to have disciplinary hearingVideo
Pittsburgh Penguins forward Evgeni Malkin is scheduled to have a disciplinary hearing with the NHL on Friday at an unspecified time. The league announced the hearing via social media shortly before noon Friday. Malkin is facing supplemental discipline for slashing Buffalo Sabres defenseman Rasmus Dahlin and striking his helmet during...
Ducks get John Carlson, Sabres and Blue Jackets open NHL trade deadline day with moves
John Carlson is going to the Anaheim Ducks as part of a surprising deal from the Washington Capitals agreed to just after midnight on NHL trade deadline day. Anaheim sent a conditional first-round pick in either this or next year’s draft plus a 2027 third-rounder to Washington for Carlson, a...
Beyond the Bylines: Starkey, Benz debate Penguins’ trade deadline strategy; Aaron Rodgers on Pat McAfeeVideo
In this week’s “Beyond the Bylines,” Joe Starkey and Tim Benz talk about the NHL trade deadline and how Pittsburgh Penguins fans are morphing into Pirates fans when it comes to their desire to hoard draft picks and prospects. They also discuss Aaron Rodgers’ appearance on “The Pat McAfee Show,”...
First Call: Browns speaking with Ty Simpson; Alex Highsmith pledges more pass rush looks from SteelersVideo
Friday’s “First Call” features some defensive dreams for Pittsburgh Steelers fans to ponder courtesy of Alex Highsmith. The Browns apparently have eyes on Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson. The Penguins have a loaded weekend schedule after the trade deadline, and Pitt is in must-win territory for its basketball team. Promises, promises...
Mark Madden: Evgeni Malkin’s meltdown couldn’t have come at a worse time for the PenguinsVideo
Evgeni Malkin wants to play another season with the Pittsburgh Penguins. He didn’t do that ambition any good via his actions in Thursday’s 5-1 home loss to Buffalo. Malkin is often petulant and occasionally selfish but took both concepts to an insane level of self-indulgence when he slashed the Sabres’...
A bad hop broke Pirates 3rd base prospect Jack Brannigan’s nose but not his resolve
BRADENTON, Fla. — Bryson Stott’s sharp grounder hit the lip between the grass and infield dirt, skipping over the glove of Pittsburgh Pirates third baseman Jack Brannigan and hitting him square in the nose. It happened so fast that Brannigan was stunned. As his eyes began to water, a thought...
Trafford man wants to curl up, break own world weightlifting record
Antonio Collins should be considered armed and dangerous. The 25-year-old Trafford resident and avid weightlifter holds the drug-free strict curl world/national record of 221 pounds in the super heavyweight class. That’s a staggering amount of weight, but Collins believes he can top his best Saturday at the Revolution Powerlifting Syndicate...
Robert Morris has new cast, same director looking to follow a familiar script
The path is very similar, even if the team is not. The Robert Morris men’s basketball team did this a year ago. The Colonials got scalding hot starting the first week of February and didn’t cool off until they won the Horizon League title. A postseason run started with a...
Win and get in: Making ACC Tournament hinges on Pitt beating Syracuse in finale
The math is now simple for Pitt with regards to securing a spot in the ACC Tournament. With a win Saturday at Syracuse in the regular-season finale, the Panthers are in. A loss would disqualify Pitt by virtue of Boston College and Notre Dame facing each other to complete the...
Tim Benz: Kris Letang’s expletives sum up Penguins’ opinions on goalie interference callsVideo
The Pittsburgh Penguins lost yet another goaltender interference challenge Thursday night against the Buffalo Sabres. It was their seventh such result in as many tries. After the ruling, ESPN cameras at PPG Paints Arena caught defenseman Kris Letang giving a blunt response to the officials. “Hey! Hey! What the (expletive)...
Penguins Take 5: Kyle Dubas has trade deadline dilemma. Patch holes or stay the course?
Egor Chinakhov has been a revelation with the Pittsburgh Penguins. Tristan Jarry has been the opposite of that with the Edmonton Oilers. Offseason additions from Anthony Mantha and Justin Brazeau to Parker Wotherspoon and Arturs Silovs have the Penguins unexpectedly in position to make the playoffs. In other words, Kyle...
Penguins lose to Sabres, could lose Evgeni Malkin to suspension after slashing incident
For the past week, the Penguins have gotten a refresher on what life is like without the nonpareil Sidney Crosby, currently designated to injured reserve due to a suspected right leg injury. On Thursday, they endured a blunt crash course on what it’s like to skate without their other superstar,...
Penguins’ Evgeni Malkin gets slashing major, tossed from game vs. Sabres
Pittsburgh Penguins forward Evgeni Malkin was assessed a bevy of penalties during a home game against the Buffalo Sabres on Thursday night, including a game misconduct. Early in the second period, at the 38-second mark, Malkin and Sabres defenseman Rasmus Dahlin engaged in a physical battle resulting in penalties for...
