An old hockey cliché says if you get pucks on net, you’ll give yourself a chance to win. Well, the Edmonton Oilers struggled mightily to get pucks on net in Game 6 of their series against the Dallas Stars on Sunday night, but they still came away with the victory and advanced to the Stanley Cup Final.
The Oilers managed just 10 shots on goal, while the Stars recorded 35. But Edmonton won 2–1, becoming just the third team in NHL history to win a playoff game while recording 10 or fewer shots on goal.
When scoring chances are in short supply, it helps to have a player who’s capable of turning nothing into something—and Edmonton’s Connor McDavid does just that. McDavid scored the first goal of the game with an incredible display of individual skill, dancing through the Dallas defense with some spectacular stickhandling before burying a backhand shot. (McDavid also assisted on the Oilers’ second goal, scored by Zach Hyman.)
“Hockey’s hard, you know? You need a lot of things to go right,” Stars center Tyler Seguin said after the game. “You need to have the opportunity. We had the opportunity. We went through a gauntlet and beat some really good teams and knew we had something special.
“We lost to a team we thought we could beat, and sometimes that’s [the] playoffs. Sometimes it’s that one bounce, one goal, one save. It’s why we all love it and it’s why this is the hardest damn trophy in the world to win.”
The Stars had been carried during these playoffs by star goalie Jake Oettinger. Over the first 16 games of the postseason (through Game 3 of the Edmonton series), Oettinger had a 2.09 goals-against average and .920 save percentage. But he allowed four goals on 28 shots in Game 4 and three goals on 26 shots in Game 5 before getting beaten twice in 10 tries in the series-clinching game Sunday.
Oettinger’s counterpart, meanwhile, was fantastic in the final three games of the series. Oilers goalie Stuart Skinner allowed just four goals in the last three games (all of which Edmonton won) and had an impressive .948 save percentage.
With the win, the Oilers advanced to their first Stanley Cup Final since 2006. Despite employing the best player in the world in McDavid, Edmonton had repeatedly fallen short in the playoffs, only advancing past the second round once in McDavid’s first eight seasons. And at the beginning of this season, it looked like the Oilers were destined for more disappointment. They won just two of their first 10 games, leading to the firing of coach Jay Woodcroft. But then they got hot—really hot. They went 26–6 in their first 32 games under new coach Kris Knoblauch, a stretch that included a 16-game winning streak, one game shy of the all-time NHL record.
The Oilers are great, but they’ll have their hands full in a Final matchup against the Florida Panthers, who finished the regular season tied for the second most wins in the NHL. Game 1 of that series will be in Florida on Saturday.
Osaka was one of the standouts in the first week at the French Open. / Susan Mullane-USA TODAY Sports
Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers are headed to the Stanley Cup Finals.
The Oilers shut the door on the Dallas Stars in Game 6 of the Western Conference Final on Sunday night, propelling themselves to the Stanley Cup Finals for the first time since 2006.
McDavid led the charge offensively, providing two points, including a sublime toe-dragging goal in the first period, in order to lift Edmonton over Dallas, 2–1. The Oilers registered just 10 shots on target in the game, 25 fewer than the Stars and the fewest ever by a team in a win to clinch the Western Conference Final.
Despite their lack of shooting, Edmonton’s special teams effort was sensational. Both Oilers goals game on the power play and they denied Dallas on each of their man advantages on Sunday night. They've prevented a goal on 28 consecutive penalties.
It marks the first time in McDavid's career that he'll be playing in the Stanley Cup Finals, and he'll be looking to help the franchise lift Lord Stanley's Cup for the first time since 1990. The Oilers have five championships in their history, and they'll be looking to add a sixth, with the championship bout against the Florida Panthers due to get underway on Saturday, June 8.
The U.S. Ryder Cup team has yet to pick a captain for 2025. But it does have a team manager, a new role created recently and announced last week by the PGA of America.
The person taking on the task called it a “dream job,” although it has never been a job until now.
And yet, John Wood—former caddie, current on-course TV reporter—seems perfect for the role that the PGA said would be one of consulting with the captain, assistants, players and PGA of America management on strategy and operational issues.
As someone who has been involved in nine Ryder Cups, including six as a caddie, Wood sees himself as perhaps a missing piece that saves time for those doing the heavy lifting at a Ryder Cup.
“I think something as simple as scheduling the week of (the Ryder Cup) can be streamlined,” Wood told Sports Illustrated. “Something like even team pictures being done before a practice round that always seems to take longer than it should.
“That can be done the first evening they are there, so as not to disrupt any practice schedules or training that the players are used to doing. And depending on the captain, I think there will be things I can be a sounding board on long before the assistants are chosen.
“And I think I will be able to plan ahead more, especially from a year out.”
Wood was undoubtedly chosen because he has a good relationship with those involved in the Ryder Cup, including Tiger Woods, who may or may not be the captain, with a decision imminent.
At the PGA Championship, Woods expressed concerns about the time demands of the captaincy given his own priorities, including being on the PGA Tour Policy Board. It appears that the PGA of America and CEO Seth Waugh are willing to give Woods the time he needs to make a decision.
There have been no obvious backup choices, although Stewart Cink—who was an assistant to Zach Johnson last year in Rome—and even Fred Couples, a three-time Presidents Cup captain and an assistant on numerous teams, have been mentioned.
Wood, in theory, could alleviate some of the duties that take up time for a captain.
He said he was first approached by the PGA of America a few months ago and the initial inquiries, he believed, were more centered on who he might advocate for the role or what the job could entail.
Wood caddied for Mark Calcavecchia at the 2002 Ryder Cup, Chris Riley (2004), Hunter Mahan (2008, 2010 and 2014) and Matt Kuchar in 2016. He also worked as a team assistant in 2018 and then the last two Ryder Cups on TV.
After some of those Ryder Cups, Wood offered some of his thoughts to the PGA in writing. It might typically be difficult for a caddie to speak up in such situations, but sometimes their perspective can be overlooked but valuable.
“Woody is one of the smartest guys I know,” Calcavecchia says. “He’s a great caddie. Great on TV. Just so knowledgeable about the game. I loved the three years he caddied for me. Such a perfect spot and honor for him and I know how passionate he is about the Ryder Cup. He’ll be amazing at whatever they need him to do. Love the guy to death.”
Wood will continue in his role with NBC Sports as an on-course reporter, but will not be part of the broadcast next year at the Ryder Cup at Bethpage.
“There is nothing in my career I’ve been more passionate about than the Ryder Cup,” he says.
The Americans have failed to win a road Ryder Cup since 1993 and are coming off a big defeat to Europe last year in Rome. But they’ve won the last two home Ryder Cups in 2016 and 2021. The Europeans will be looking to win their first road Ryder Cup since 2012 at Medinah.
Golf’s D-Day anniversary
The RBC Canadian Open managed to escape the week without the off-course drama that has enveloped it in recent years. The tournament was not played in 2020 and 2021 due to the coronavirus pandemic. In 2022, it was the played the same week as the first-ever LIV Golf event in London. Last year it followed the announcement of the June 6 “framework agreement” that dominated discussion during the week.
The one-year anniversary of that momentous announcement falls this week during the Memorial Tournament. The events have switched dates since the Memorial became a signature event and the PGA Tour wanted to move it to the week prior to the U.S. Open.
There figures to be plenty of discussion about the agreement this week, even though nothing has been completed. Plenty has changed in the golf world—the PGA Tour went ahead with plans to form a for-profit arm called PGA Tour Enterprises, got $1.5 billion of investment from a private equity company called Strategic Sports Group and outlined plans for players to get equity shares in the company over the next eight years.
But nothing has been decided with the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia, negotiations that are said to be ongoing as LIV Golf also plays its next event this week in Houston.
“Obviously a year later you would have thought we had a bit more clarity on that,” said Mackenzie Hughes, who has said previously he thinks all of the chatter is not good for the fans who want a resolution. “There’s not really much there. I think eventually when we get through this situation, I think golf will be in a great spot. But there’s a lot of hurdles to get over right now.”
Mackenzie Hughes acknowledged that fans are tired of hearing about pro golf's off-course battle. / Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports
One, of course, is all the money talk. LIV Golf is backed by the PIF, a $700-billion-plus fund. The $1.5 billion in equity PGA Tour Enterprises is getting could grow to $3 billion and is meant to grow the business so players can cash in on their equity shares, with players being in line for millions down the road.
So far, nothing has been done to greatly enhance the product. And the top players are competing against each other only at the major championships.
“I think one of the biggest things I think about is the fan and how the fan has been affected by all this,” Hughes said. “The fans are just tired of hearing about it, tired of hearing about the money. I don't think the money that's going around is sustainable for golf. I would love for the game to kind of come back a little bit where it's like we're just, we're talking about the golf now, we're not talking about LIV, we're not talking about the money and these purses and all that sort of stuff. Because people don't care. People don't want to hear it. I've said this many times to, you know, the media, the Tour ... I feel like we're shoving it down people's throats.
“This (the Canadian Open) is a big tournament for me, I would say far bigger than the one next week (the Memorial), but next week’s worth $20 million, this one's worth, I don't know how many, whatever, but that's not something that I care or think about, but I'm here to win this trophy, it wouldn't matter if it was for a thousand bucks or a million bucks, I'm here to play well and win this tournament. I think it's become so much about the money and, again, I would say 99 percent of the people don't care, they don't want to hear it. So I think the state of the game, I would say right now it's not super healthy, because of the things we're focused on, but I think once we can kind of get past this stuff and maybe the deal happens or it doesn't happen, but we kind of get some clarity there, then we can kind of go forward.”
Golf’s longest day
The U.S. Open is next week at Pinehurst No. 2 but nearly one-third of the field is still to be determined. A good number of those players will come from final qualifiers at 10 North American locations on Monday, with one in Canada and the rest in the U.S.
There have already been 23 players who made it into the field via qualifying in Dallas, London and Japan on May 20. Another 44 players are expected to advance through on Monday, with the United States Golf Association holding a few spots back for players who can still make it via the top 60 in the Official World Golf Ranking as of June 10.
There are likely to be some withdrawals but for now there are 518 players are the 10 qualifying spots, with 84 players at a qualifier near San Francisco and 84 in Durham, N.C., having the most and Oregon, with 44, the least. The spots assigned to each site will not be disclosed until just before the events begin.
The Florida qualifier at the Bear's Club has 73 players, nine of whom play for LIV Golf including Joaquin Niemann, Branden Grace, Graeme McDowell and Charl Schwartzel. European Ryder Cup captain Luke Donald is also at the Florida qualifier.
Stewart Cink, 51, is among those at the qualifier in Canada. Cink has played in 23 U.S. Opens. Charley Hoffman is also at that site.
LIV players Matt Jones and David Puig are at the qualifier in Lake Merced, Calif. Bill Haas and Webb Simpson are entered in the Durham qualifier, as is LIV player Harold Varner. Three-time major champion Padraig Harrington is among those at the Columbus, Ohio, qualifier.
Adam Scott, who has played in 91 consecutive majors dating to 2001, fell out of the top 60 in the OWGR again after his finish at the Canadian Open. He is scheduled to play in Springfield, Ohio.
The fields and scoring for all of the sites can be found here.
A bittersweet U.S. Women’s Open for Lexi ... and other notes
Lexi Thompson’s 18th U.S. Women’s Open did not go as she had hoped during a week in which she said this would be her last full season on the LPGA Tour. Thompson, just 29, played in her first U.S. Women’s Open at age 12. She turned pro at 15 and won as a teenager.
But she made clear last week that the demands of professional golf and expectations associated with it took a toll. She alluded to difficulty dealing with some of the criticism that often came her way. And she said the lifestyle can be lonely.
Lancaster (Pa.) Country Club proved to be difficult for numerous players and her scores of 78-75 missed the cut.
"Minus the golf, it was amazing,” Thompson said. “It wasn't the golf that I wanted to play honestly, but it was a special week, of course, with announcing what I did. To see all the parents out there and just to hear their chants and like 'Go Lexi's' made me smile every single shot even if I kept bogeying. It was a special week.”
Thompson said she appreciated the support.
“It's meant the world to me; like I said earlier in the week, this is where my whole dream got started,” she said. “When I was 12, I knew when I teed it up first at Pine Needles, that's where I wanted to be and playing against the best.
“To continue to do so and to be playing my 18th, though it wasn't the way I wanted to end it, it was always special every time I teed it up at the USGA events, so I cherished every moment that I had. I'm so blessed and grateful for the family I have.”
Thompson she hopes to make the U.S. Solheim Cup team and could still play selected events going forward. She has an app called “Lexi Fitness” that she is developing.
And a few more things
Robert MacIntyre’s victory at the RBC Canadian Open was his first on the PGA Tour after coming over this year via the DP World Tour exemption category. The win moves him well inside the top 60 in the Official World Golf Ranking and means he can avoid Monday’s 36-hole final qualifier he had signed up for in Canada. ... The Canadian Open was also a Open Qualifying Series event for the British Open at Royal Troon, with the top three players not otherwise exempt getting in the field. Those spots went to Ben Griffin, who finished second, and Mackenzie Hughes and Maverick McNealy, who tied for seventh. ... This week’s Memorial Tournament will offer one spot in the Open. The conclusion of the Memorial will also be a cutoff point for top 60 OWGR not otherwise exempt into the U.S. Open. ... Laurie Canter’s first victory on the DP World Tour at the European Open puts him in position to earn a PGA Tour card via the top 10 in the Race to Dubai not otherwise exempt. Canter is currently eighth after his victory. He’s also a reserve player for LIV, having competed in two events this year but none since February. The PGA Tour has stuck to a rule that makes you wait a year from your last LIV event to be able top play in a PGA Tour-sponsored event. ... The first round of the U.S. Open at Pinehurst No. 2 is in 10 days.
The hidden ball trick is one of the oldest ruses in baseball, but you truly never know when it'll make a surprise appearance.
The Clemson Tigers successfully deployed the deceptive strategy during Sunday's regional semifinal tilt against Coastal Carolina during the Clemson Regional Finals of the NCAA's Division I baseball tournament. The team was stunningly able to get itself out of the inning after using the classic bit of trickery in the second inning against the Chanticleers.
Coastal Carolina had runners on second and third after Clemson secured an out at first base. Third baseman Blake Wright, who had the ball in his glove, walked over to the mound to hand the ball back to the pitcher before nonchalantly walking back to third base.
Of course, he never actually dropped off the ball.
After getting back to his position, he waited until Coastal Carolina's Dean Mihos stepped off the bag and deftly tagged him for the final out of the inning, leaving Mihos absolutely bewildered.
The trickery was pulled off to perfection, and Clemson got themselves out of a tricky situation thanks to one of the oldest tricks in the book, which just about no one saw coming.
Wright's big defensive play came just moments after he opened the scoring in the bottom of the first inning with an RBI single. Clemson scored two runs in the first inning and jumped out to a 6–2 lead by the fifth.
The New York Yankees pulled off a comeback victory against the San Francisco Giants on Sunday afternoon, rallying in the top of the ninth inning as they deftly turned a 5–3 deficit into a 7–5 lead.
After Anthony Volpe hit an RBI triple to make it a one-run game, Soto came to the plate and gave the Yankees the lead, unloading a 398-foot blast to right center field off of Camilo Doval.
Soto took a moment to admire his moonshot, too. After the no-doubt home run came off the bat, Soto stopped and watched it fly into the stands before taking a step and launching a huge bat flip.
The two-run blast in the ninth inning was Soto's second home run of the game. He's now up to 17 homers in his first season in New York as he and Aaron Judge have been putting on a show on a near nightly basis of late.
The Yankees improved to 42–19 with Sunday's win, and Soto's contributions to the victory can't be understated. Aaron Boone commended his performance after the game, too.
"That's some savage at-bats right there," Boone said of the star outfielder via the YES Network.
The team is off on Monday before it returns to New York for a series against the Minnesota Twins, which gets underway on Tuesday.
Caitlin Clark was back in New York on Sunday night for the Indiana Fever's showdown against the New York Liberty at the Barclays Center, and she treated a group of young basketball fans to an awesome moment after they asked her to snap a photo before the game.
Clark was warming up ahead of tip-off on Sunday when she happily obliged a group of Fever fans who wanted to take a photo with her.
In a moment captured by sports reporter Aliyah Funschelle, the group of kids could be seen beaming after Clark walked over and greeted them with some high fives, and they hopped up and gathered around in order to take the photo.
Indiana has gotten off to a slow start to the season, but they picked up a much-needed win on Saturday against the Chicago Sky in order to improve to 2–8. There was some physical play in that game, including a controversial moment between Clark and Sky's Chennedy Carter, but the 22-year-old didn't let any lingering frustrations stand in the way of a heartwarming moment between herself and some of her biggest fans.
Across 10 games in the WNBA, Clark is averaging 16.9 points, 6.5 assists and 5.4 rebounds.
San Francisco Giants star Blake Snell exited Sunday's outing against the New York Yankees during the fifth inning with an injury, another wrinkle in what has been an injury-plagued first couple of months of the season for the left-hander.
The Giants announced postgame that Snell was removed from the game after dealing with a tight left groin. He landed on the 15-day IL with a similar injury, a left adductor strain, earlier this season and ended up missing more than a month of action.
Snell threw 99 pitches in the game but couldn't escape the fifth inning before making his leave. The injury appeared to occur in the top of the fifth after he threw a pitch to Alex Verdugo. He walked off the field alongside Giants senior director of athletic training Dave Groeschner.
The left groin tightness put an early end to what was the 31-year-old's best start of the season. Prior to exiting, he'd recorded seven strikeouts and surrendered just one run across 4 2/3 innings, though two more earned runs were tacked on after Verdugo doubled off Snell's replacement Erik Miller.
Snell, the reigning National League Cy Young winner, has struggled through his first six starts of the season. After Sunday's start, he owns a 9.51 ERA across 23 2/3 innings with 31 strikeouts and 14 walks.
He signed for San Francisco on a two-year $62 million deal during free agency, which includes a player option for the 2025 season.
It's not immediately clear if Snell will head back to the injured list as a result of his latest ailment, though it'd certainly be a big blow for the left-hander as he aims to rediscover his form from last year.
There's a gold rush happening in pro golf, and the USGA is on the train. This year it boosted its purse for the U.S. Women's Open to $12 million, up from $11 million at last year's event at Pebble Beach.
Yuka Saso is taking home $2.4 million, the richest first-place prize in women's golf. The 22-year-old Japanese player, born in the Philippines, won a second U.S. Women's Open to go alongside her title in 2021. In second, the only other player under par, was Hinako Shibuno, giving Japan its first 1-2 finish in a major, men's or women's
The PGA Tour headed north this week for its annual stop at the RBC Canadian Open. The purse was boosted $400,000 this year, to $9.4 million.
Nick Taylor ended a 69-year dry spell for Canadians at their national open last year, kicking off a raucous celebration. There was no Canadian repeat this year, but there was a first-time winner.
Robert MacIntyre, a 27-year-old Scotsman, picked up his first win on the PGA Tour and a check for $1,692,000.
Here are the final payouts for the 2024 RBC Canadian Open.
RBC Canadian Open final payouts
WIN: Robert MacIntyre, 16 under: $1,692,000
2. Ben Griffin, 15 under: $1,024,600
3. Victor Perez, 14 under: $648,600
T4. Tom Kim, Rory McIlroy; 13 under: $423,000
6. Corey Conners; 12 under: $340,750
T7. Maverick McNealy, Mackenzie Hughes, Ryan Fox; 10 under: $295,316.67
T10. Chandler Phillips, Keith Mitchell, Joel Dahmen, Sam Burns; 9 under: $256,150
T14. Beau Hossler, Jacob Bridgeman, Michael Kim, Sam Stevens, Carson Young, Andrew Novak, Aaron Rai; 8 under: $152,750
T21. David Skinns, Taylor Pendrith, Tommy Fleetwood; 7 under: $106,376.67
T24. Zac Blair, Tyler Duncan, Chad Ramey; 6 under: $83,190
T27. Stewart Cink, Thorbjorn Olesen, Jhonattan Vegas, Sean O'Hair, Matt Wallace, Trace Crowe; 5 under: $65,800
T33. Shane Lowry, Vince Whaley; 4 under: $54,755
T35. Nicolai Hojgaard, Ben Silverman, Sami Valimaki, Ryan Palmer, C.T. Pan, Ryo Hisatsune, Pierceson Coody; 3 under: $44,851.43
T42. Nate Lashley, Harry Hall, Adam Scott, Kelly Kraft, Garrick Higgo, Mark Hubbard, Kevin Yu, Erik van Rooyen, Nick Hardy; 2 under: $29,986
T51. Lanto Griffin, Gary Woodland, Adrien Dumont de Chassart, Chesson Hadley, Joseph Bramlett, Adam Svensson; 1 under: $22,456.33
T57. Myles Creighton, Kevin Streelman, Mac Meissner; Even: $21,526
Tensions flared between Chicago White Sox outfielder Tommy Pham and Milwaukee Brewers catcher William Contreras during Sunday's matinee after Pham was thrown out at home in the bottom of the eighth inning on a play that wasn't particularly close.
There was a moderate collision between Pham and Contreras at home plate, and the Brewers catcher appeared to bark some superlatives at the veteran outfielder after slapping the tag on him to end the inning.
Whatever Contreras said did not sit well with Pham, who looked back toward Milwaukee's dugout and eventually needed to be restrained by his teammates as he shouted in the direction of Contreras.
“Nah we ain’t taking that from the Brewers. I don’t care how many Ls we got this year”
Ultimately, not much came of the situation, though Pham didn't hold back when asked about the moment by reporters after the 6–3 defeat.
"One-run ball game, close play at the plate—actually it wasn't even f–ing close... Third base coach sends you, you gotta go. I'm nailed out at home by a mile, I'm going to the dugout and I hear the tough guy with all the 'hoorah' sh–. I'll never start anything but I'll be prepared to finish it.
"There's a reason why I do all kinds of fighting in the offseason. Because I'm prepared to f– somebody up," Pham said.
“There’s a reason why I do all kinds of fighting in the offseason… because I’m prepared to f*** somebody up.”
Tommy Pham didn’t hold back on his play at the plate with William Contreras 👀
Pham endured a frustrating day at the plate, going 0-for-3 with three strikeouts and a walk. The White Sox fell to 15–45 following Sunday's loss, the worst record in MLB.
