Sports category, Page 652
NFL Draft preview: Steelers have 3 viable options if they elect to take center in early rounds
Perhaps the worst-kept secret in the NFL is the Pittsburgh Steelers are targeting a center early in the draft, most likely using the No. 20 overall pick to address a position of need. Center, of course, is the one position on the roster where the Steelers don’t have a definitive...
Westmoreland County campus clippings: Derry grads John Kerr, Mark Pavlik earn postseason awards
Derry has a strong presence on the Penn State men’s volleyball team. It also loomed large at postseason award time. A pair of Derry alums — a high-energy hitter and his veteran coach — are taking home some top-notch hardware. Grad student John Kerr was named the Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball...
WPIAL to hold hearings for 2 Aliquippa football transfers, approves 3 others
A WPIAL hearing will decide the eligibility of two Aliquippa football players who transferred from rival Central Valley. The WPIAL board granted eligibility to three players who transferred to Aliquippa from others schools, but voted Wednesday to hold hearings for sophomore Joseph Work and freshman Khalil Ellerbee, said WPIAL executive...
Penguins maintain belief they are capable of winning the Stanley Cup
ELMONT, N.Y. — Really, the only thing that was all that notably different about the Pittsburgh Penguins’ morning skate at UBS Arena was the time. It started at 11 a.m. With the host New York Islanders skating at their practice rink, the Penguins took to the ice approximately a half...
NHL has no appetite to expand playoffs beyond its 16-team tournament for the Stanley Cup
Sixteen teams, each one needing to win 16 games over four rounds of best-of-seven series to lift the Stanley Cup, has been the way the NHL decides its champion for nearly four decades. That isn’t changing any time soon. The NHL is the only one of the major four North...
NBA bans Jontay Porter after gambling probe shows he shared information, bet on games
Toronto Raptors two-way player Jontay Porter was banned for life from the NBA on Wednesday after a league probe found he disclosed confidential information to sports bettors and wagered on games, even betting on the Raptors to lose. Porter is the second person to be banned by Commissioner Adam Silver...
Mark Madden: Disappointing players, strategy, weeping spelled demise for Penguins
The Pittsburgh Penguins will miss the playoffs for a second straight season. It feels like an eternity. Or like Buffalo. Sidney Crosby and Bryan Rust deserve better. Not many others do. Those who frustrated outnumber those who didn’t. These players are the most disappointing: 1. Erik Karlsson. $11.5 million doesn’t...
Former Pitt center Federiko Federiko makes verbal commitment to Texas Tech
Less than a month after entering the NCAA transfer portal, former Pitt center Federiko Federiko has found a new home, making a verbal commitment to Texas Tech on Wednesday. ????BREAKING????#TexasTech has received a commitment from Pittsburgh transfer center Federiko Federiko (@Federiko_F)!!One of the best defenders in the ACC is headed...
Penguins forward Bryan Rust nominated for King Clancy award
ELMONT, N.Y. — Forward Bryan Rust was named the Pittsburgh Penguins’ nominee for the NHL’s King Clancy Memorial Trophy. The league announced nominees for all 32 teams on Wednesday. Named after Hockey Hall of Famer Frank “King” Clancy, the award recognizes “the player who best exemplifies leadership qualities on and...
Penn State center Hunter Nourzad, ILB Junior Colson among the final official pre-draft visitors to SteelersVideo
For their final official prospect visits in advance of next week’s draft, the Pittsburgh Steelers on Wednesday hosted yet another center, a second one of the top available inside linebackers in as many days and a British former boxer and rugby player. Travis Clayton, a 22-year-old who took part in...
Marc-Andre Fleury signs a $2.5M extension with the Wild to return for next season at age 40
ST. PAUL, Minn. — The Minnesota Wild signed goalie Marc-Andre Fleury to a one-year, $2.5 million contract extension on Wednesday, bringing back the veteran for his age-40 season. Fleury, who turns 40 on Nov. 28, has had a prolific season in which he passed Patrick Roy for second place behind...
Penguins goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic scheduled to start season finaleVideo
ELMONT, N.Y. — After being formally eliminated from playoff contention on Tuesday, the Pittsburgh Penguins are scheduled to start goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic in the team’s regular season finale against the New York Islanders at UBS Arena on Wednesday. Coach Mike Sullivan announced Nedeljkovic’s status following a morning skate. Nedeljkovic will...
USA Basketball announces its men’s team for the Paris Olympics
LeBron James is going back to the Olympics for the first time in 12 years. Stephen Curry is headed to the games for the first time. Kevin Durant will go there with his eyes on history. And they’re just part of a star-studded roster the Americans have assembled for the...
First Call: Was Steelers’ top draft choice in town?; another WR trade option could be emerging
Wednesday’s “First Call” takes a look at another potential trade candidate for the Pittsburgh Steelers at the wide receiver position. The Steelers’ top prize in the draft may have been in their building Monday. We get an update on Brian Flores’ coaching situation, and we find out why Penn State’s...
Out of alignment: Bothersome back issue sidelines Pirates 3B Ke’Bryan Hayes again
Even before Ke’Bryan Hayes was a late scratch from the starting lineup Tuesday at the New York Mets, the Pittsburgh Pirates third baseman knew lower back tightness could become an issue this season. The 2023 NL Gold Glove winner told TribLive during the opening homestand that his back continues to...
U mad, bro?: Fan anxiety over Penguins’ playoff elimination; doubt about Steelers; pig wrestling
Since we are starting our “Breakfast With Benz” draft previews for the Pittsburgh Steelers on Thursday, we had to move up “U mad, bro?” to Wednesday this week. But given that the Penguins were eliminated from playoff contention Tuesday, one day shorter on the calendar doesn’t mean we are any...
TV Q&A: Did SportsNet Pittsburgh move to a more expensive tier on Verizon’s FiOS TV?
Trib Total Media TV writer Rob Owen answers reader questions every Wednesday at TribLive.com in a column that also appears in the Sunday Tribune-Review. Q: Verizon’s FiOS TV has apparently removed SportsNet Pittsburgh, the MLB Network and perhaps a couple of other channels from its lower-priced packages. (Full disclosure: I...
Tim Benz: Fitting end to playoff hopes as Penguins miss postseason without even playing
It’s only fitting that the Pittsburgh Penguins’ playoff hopes came to a sudden halt Tuesday, thanks, in part, to a blown third-period lead and an inability to win in overtime. It didn’t matter that — in this case — it wasn’t even the Penguins that blew the lead or lost...
Pirates farm report for April 16, 2024: Nick Gonzales racks up 4 more hits in Indy win
INDIANAPOLIS (Triple-A, 7-9) outslugged St. Paul (Twins), 10-6. 2B Nick Gonzales (.397) went 4 for 5 with a double and a triple. DH Canaan Smith-Njigba (.286) went 3 for 3 with a walk, a double, two runs scored and two RBIs. CH Ji Hwan Bae (.500) went 2 for 4...
Penguins eliminated from playoff contention after Capitals clinch final wild-card spot
The Pittsburgh Penguins entered the 2023-24 season with plenty of motivation. “There’s something to prove, I think, for everybody,” Penguins forward Sidney Crosby said during a season-ticket event in mid-September. By mid-April, the only thing that’s been affirmed about the Penguins is that they are not a Stanley Cup contender....
Jared Jones shows ruthless efficiency but bullpen blows lead as Mets beat Pirates
Jared Jones continues to shove with a ruthless efficiency, recording seven strikeouts without a walk while holding the New York Mets to one hit in five shutout innings. That the Pittsburgh Pirates practiced caution with his innings limit, pulling the rookie right-hander after 59 pitches, backfired when their bullpen blew...
Woman who accused Trevor Bauer of sex assault charged with defrauding him
PHOENIX — An Arizona woman who accused former major league pitcher Trevor Bauer of sexual assault has been charged with defrauding the baseball player. An indictment unsealed Monday in Maricopa County Superior Court charges the woman with fraud and theft by extortion, both felonies, but doesn’t provide specific details about...
Hockey business booming as NHL bounces back from pandemic in big way
NEW YORK — Arenas are full, the NHL is a fixture on TV screens across North America, highlight-reel goals are talking points on a near-daily basis and “The Pat McAfee Show” even has a segment called “Hockey is Awesome.” Piece it all together, and more eyes are on the puck...
AP mock draft: Steelers to take Washington offensive lineman Troy Fautanu
The NFL Draft madness begins early in the final edition of the AP’s 2024 mock draft. Eight trades in the first round. Two swaps in the top five. One team moves down and back up. Another makes three trades, going down twice before a move up to snatch a quarterback....
Browns’ Deshaun Watson throwing full speed after shoulder surgery; timetable unclear
BEREA, Ohio — Deshaun Watson is pleased with the velocity on his passes. At least there’s one aspect of his recovery from shoulder surgery with some speed. The Browns quarterback said Tuesday that he’s following a conservative rehab plan set up by his doctor and the team’s training staff as...
