NHL
Alex Ovechkin moved four goals away from breaking Wayne Gretzky’s NHL record 894 after scoring the 891st of his career in the Washington Capitals 4-3 victory against the Bruins in Boston on Tuesday night. The 39-year-old Russian has 38 goals this season and is on track to reach 40 for a record 14th time despite missing 16 games because of a broken left fibula. The first-place Capitals have eight more games left this season.
Rasmus Dahlin and Alex Tuch each had a goal and an assist, and the Buffalo Sabres swept their season series against the Ottawa Senators with a 5-2 win on Tuesday night. Buffalo outscored the Senators 17-5 in their four meetings this season. The Senators were without captain Brady Tkachuk, who is sidelined with an upper-body injury from a hit by Ryan Graves in Sunday’s game against Pittsburgh. This marks only the fourth game Tkachuk has missed in the past three years. The Sabres jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first scoring twice on five shots.
Jake Guentzel had a goal and an assist, Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped 28 shots, and the Tampa Bay Lightning beat the New York Islanders 4-1 for their fourth straight win to inch closer to clinching a playoff spot. Oliver Bjorkstrand scored his 20th of the season, Victor Hedman also scored and Nick Paul added an empty-netter for the Lightning. Nikita Kucherov, Brayden Point each added two assists. Bo Horvat scored for New York and Ilya Sorokin made 19 saves as the Islanders lost their sixth straight (0-4-2), further diminishing their slim playoff hopes.
Nick Suzuki scored his second of the game 29 seconds into overtime as the Montreal Canadiens came back for a dramatic 3-2 victory over the Florida Panthers. Suzuki also tied the game with 8.4 seconds remaining in regulation. Josh Anderson also scored for Montreal and Sam Montembeault stopped 25 shots. Lane Hutson earned three assists to pad that total to 57 this season, passing Chris Chelios for second-most by a rookie defenseman in NHL history. Mackie Samoskevich and Niko Mikkola scored for Florida, which was swept in four games against Montreal this season. Vitek Vanecek made 18 saves.
Kirill Marchenko scored three goals for his third career hat trick and added an assist, and the Columbus Blue Jackets beat the Nashville Predators 8-4. Sean Monahan had two goals and two assists, Adam Fantilli had two goals and an assist, Dante Fabbro had a goal and an assist, and Zach Werenski and Kent Johnson each had two assists for Columbus. Elvis Merzlikins stopped 24 shots.Filip Forsberg, Michael Bunting, Justin Barron and Jordan Oesterle scored for Nashville, and Luke Evangelista had two assists. Juuse Saros gave up a season-high seven goals on 26 shots through two periods, and Justus Annunen had 10 saves in the third.
Cam Fowler scored with 1:34 remaining in overtime and the St. Louis Blues won their 10th straight game, 2-1 over the Detroit Red Wings. Jordan Kyrou also scored, and Jordan Binnington made 20 saves for St. Louis, which moved one point ahead of idle Minnesota for the first Western Conference wild-card spot. J.T. Compher scored and Cam Talbot made 35 saves for Detroit, which is four points behind Montreal and two points behind Columbus and the New York Rangers in the race for the second Eastern Conference wild-card spot.
Kevin Stenlund and Barrett Hayton scored for the Utah Hockey Club in a 3-1 win over the Calgary Flames. Clayton Keller had an empty-netter and Karel Vejmelka stopped 32 shots to help Utah get its second straight win. Rasmus Andersson scored for Calgary and Dustin Wolf finished with 25 saves. The Flames lost for the third time in four games (1-2-1).
Leon Draisaitl added to his NHL-leading goal total by scoring on a 5-on-3 power play to put the Edmonton Oilers ahead for good Tuesday night. But the Vegas Golden Knights clinched a playoff berth despite the 3-2 loss. The Golden Knights had their season-high six-game winning streak snapped. They were assured a playoff spot when the Calgary Flames were beaten 3-1 by the Utah Hockey Club. Edmonton kept its slim hopes alive for the Pacific Division title by pulling to within seven points of the first-place Golden Knights. Both teams have eight games left.
Mason McTavish scored the only goal in the shootout, and the Anaheim Ducks beat the San Jose Sharks 4-3. Trevor Zegras and Sam Colangelo each had a goal and an assist, Jackson LaCombe also scored for Anaheim, and McTavish had three assists. Lukas Dostal stopped 28 shots as the Ducks won for the fourth time in six games. Alexander Wennberg and defensemen Shakir Mukhamadullin and Marc-Edouard Vlasic scored for San Jose. Alexandar Georgiev finished with 34 saves as the Sharks lost their third straight (0-2-1). McTavish scored in the third round and Tyler Toffoli’s attempt went wide right on the Sharks’ last try to give the Ducks the win.
Andrei Kuzmenko, Adrian Kempe and captain Anze Kopitar each had a goal and an assist in the Los Angeles Kings’ 4-1 victory over the NHL-leading Winnipeg Jets. Trevor Moore also scored for the Kings, who moved two points ahead of Edmonton for second place in the Pacific Division with their 11th victory in 14 games. Cole Perfetti scored his 17th goal and Connor Hellebuyck stopped 16 shots for the Jets, whose three-game winning streak ended in the opener of a three-game road trip.
MLB
Eugenio Suárez hit a go-ahead grand slam with two outs in the eighth inning after Corbin Burnes pitched 4 1/3 innings in his Arizona debut, and the Diamondbacks beat the New York Yankees 7-5 to hand them their first loss. The Diamondbacks scored five times in the eighth two days after an eight-run eighth inning against the Chicago Cubs. Arizona rallied for its second straight win after Burnes allowed four runs, two earned, and four hits in his first start since signing a $210 million, six-year deal with the Diamondbacks as a free agent on Dec. 30.
Yankees slugger Giancarlo Stanton said he'll continue using a torpedo bat whenever he returns from pain in both elbows, but also declined to say whether he thought using the new model might have caused his injury. Last season Stanton began using the unique bats that feature more wood lower down the barrel closer to the label, shaped a little like a bowling pin. During spring training, he seemed to hint that using the different bats could have caused pain, before later adding he didn’t know why his injury occurred. “You’re not going to get the story you’re looking for,” Stanton said Tuesday before New York opened a three-game series against the Arizona Diamondbacks. “So if that’s what you guys want, that ain’t going to happen.”
Sandy Alcantara pitched five effective innings for his first win in 19 months and the Miami Marlins beat the New York Mets 4-2 despite getting only three hits. Alcantara, who missed last season after undergoing Tommy John surgery, allowed two runs and four hits while striking out four in his first victory since Sept. 3, 2023. The 2022 NL Cy Young Award winner got a no-decision in his season debut March 27. Graham Pauley hit a go-ahead, two-run double in the fourth and Kyle Stowers homered for the Marlins. Mets star shortstop Francisco Lindor returned after sitting out Monday following the birth of his son and had an RBI single but also made two fielding errors.
New York Mets left-hander Sean Manaea had a setback in his recovery from a right oblique strain and won’t throw for two weeks. He underwent imaging that showed inflammation and received a platelet-rich plasma injection on Monday. Manaea didn’t pitch during spring training. He was shut down in late February and then placed on the 15-day injured list March 27. The original timeline for his return was late April, but Mets manager Carlos Mendoza indicated that date no longer seems feasible. The 33-year-old Manaea was New York’s top starter in 2024, going 12-6 with a 3.47 ERA in 32 outings during his first season with the team. He became a free agent again in November and re-signed with the Mets for $75 million over three years.
Nathan Eovaldi pitched a four-hitter for the majors’ first complete game of the season, and the Texas Rangers beat the Cincinnati Reds 1-0. Eovaldi struck out eight and walked none in his fifth career complete game. The right-hander threw 99 pitches, 70 for strikes. It was Eovaldi’s first shutout since April 29, 2023, against the Yankees and No. 3 for his career. Wyatt Langford homered for Texas in the first against Carson Spiers.
Bo Bichette hit a tiebreaking two-run single with two out in the eighth inning and the Toronto Blue Jays won their third straight game by beating the Washington Nationals 5-3. The Blue Jays finished with 12 hits, all singles. Bichette bounced an 0-2 pitch from Washington left-hander Jose A. Ferrer (0-1) down the first base line to drive in George Springer and Will Wagner. Chad Green (1-0) got one out for the win and Jeff Hoffman finished with a 1-2-3 ninth for his second save in two opportunities. Washington's CJ Abrams went 3 for 4 with two doubles and scored a run.
Jake Mangum collected three more hits and Shane Baz struck out a career-high 10 in six innings, helping the Tampa Bay Rays beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 7-0. Mangum drove in two runs and scored twice, one day after he went 4 for 4 with two steals in his second major league game. Brandon Lowe homered as Tampa Bay earned its third consecutive win. Lowe finished with three hits and three RBIs. Baz allowed seven hits and walked none in his first start of the season. Pittsburgh right-hander Thomas Harrington (0-1) permitted six runs and seven hits in four innings in his major league debut.
Eric Haase and Christian Yelich hit solo home runs to back a strong start by Chad Patrick and the Milwaukee Brewers beat the Kansas City Royals 5-0 for their first win of the season. Patrick gave the Brewers something they hadn’t had thus far — three scoreless innings to begin the game. Milwaukee surrendered 24 runs in the first three innings of its first four games. Haase homered from the ninth spot in the order to put the Brewers up 1-0 in the third. Brice Turang and Jackson Chourio followed with singles and Turang scored on a force-out at second on Yelich’s grounder to make it 2-0. Patrick gave up three hits and three walks with five strikeouts in 4 2/3 innings.
Logan Webb pitched seven strong innings, Willy Adames hit a two-run double and the San Francisco Giants beat the Houston Astros 3-1. Adames’ double down the left-field line scored Christian Koss and Patrick Bailey. Heliot Ramos later added a solo homer, his third of the year, and that was all Webb (1-0) would need. He held the Astros to just one run and five hits with six strikeouts and no walks. Giants reliever Ryan Walker pitched a scoreless ninth inning to earn his second save. Houston’s lone run came on a homer by José Altuve to the left-field Crawford Boxes, his first of the year, in the fourth.
Kyren Paris hit a tiebreaking single in the 11th inning, Yoan Moncada followed with a two-run double and the Los Angeles Angels beat the St. Louis Cardinals 9-7. The game was tied at 3 after nine innings before each team scored three runs in the 10th — and the Angels added three in the 11th. Victor Scott II had an RBI single in the bottom half, but Ryan Zeferjahn got two outs for his first career save. Zeferjahn struck out Willson Contreras with a runner aboard to end it as the Angels outlasted St. Louis in extra innings for the second consecutive night. Ryan Johnson earned his first major league win.
Michael King struck out 11 in five innings and Jackson Merrill homered for the San Diego Padres, who started 6-0 for the first time in their 57-season history by beating the Cleveland Guardians 7-0. The Padres’ previous best start was 4-0 in 1984, when they went to their first World Series. King and four relievers combined on a two-hitter for the Padres, who have won the first two games of the three-game series between teams that made the postseason in 2024. The Padres have thrown shutouts in three of their last four games.
Seiya Suzuki hit a three-run homer in the first inning, Kyle Tucker added a solo shot in the third to give him home runs in a career-best four straight games and the Chicago Cubs slugged away for a second consecutive night in beating the Athletics 7-4. The A’s answered in the bottom of the first on Brent Rooker’s two-run drive, and Shea Langeliers had a two-run shot. Cubs lefty Justin Steele struck out six over 6 2/3 innings and continued his interleague success in his third start of 2025, helping Chicago win back-to-back games for the first time this season.
Jose Miranda hit a tiebreaking two-run single in Minnesota’s five-run sixth inning, and the Twins beat the Chicago White Sox 8-3 for their first win of the season. Ryan Jeffers and Ty France each had two hits for Minnesota, and Harrison Bader added a three-run homer in the ninth. The Twins trailed 3-0 before rallying with two outs in the sixth. White Sox right-hander Shane Smith allowed two hits and two runs in 5 2/3 innings in his major league debut.
Casey Mize combined with three relievers on a one-hitter, and the Detroit Tigers beat the Seattle Mariners 4-1. Riley Greene homered for the second straight day as Detroit got its second straight win after dropping its first three games. Kerry Carpenter, Colt Keith and Spencer Torkelson each drove in a run. Seattle got its only hit on Victor Robles’ leadoff single in the first inning. Mize struck out six and walked three in 5 2/3 innings in his first start of the season. Tommy Kahnle pitched the ninth for his first save.
Dustin May pitched five strong innings after missing nearly two years, Mookie Betts hit his third go-ahead homer of the season and the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the winless Atlanta Braves 3-1. With a 7-0 mark, the defending World Series champions are off to the club's best start since moving to Los Angeles. The only better starts in franchise history came in 1955 (10-0) and 1940 (9-0) when the team was located in Brooklyn. The Braves fell to 0-6 as reigning NL Cy Young Award winner Chris Sale took the loss.
Dustin May allowed just one hit and an unearned run for the Los Angeles Dodgers in his first major league start in nearly two years. The right-hander went five innings, struck out six and walked three in the team's 3-1 win over the Atlanta Braves. May was thrilled to be back after recovering from a life-threatening tear in his esophagus that happened when he was eating a salad and a piece of lettuce got stuck last year. He was nearly ready to come back from Tommy John revision surgery when the scary incident happened. May struck out the side in the first inning and was greeted by high-fives from his teammates in the dugout.
NBA
OG Anunoby scored 27 points and the New York Knicks beat Philadelphia 105-91 on Tuesday night, sending the 76ers to their ninth straight loss. Landry Shamet added a season-high 20 points with six 3-pointers for the Knicks, who won their third straight. Mitchell Robinson had 14 points and 14 rebounds on his 27th birthday in his second start of the season. With All-Star Jalen Brunson and his two backup point guards sidelined, and Karl-Anthony Towns sitting out with left knee soreness, Anunoby picked up the slack with a series of strong drives to the basket. Former Knicks guard Quentin Grimes scored 26 points for the 76ers.
Shaedon Sharpe had 33 points and 10 rebounds and Deni Avdija finished with 32 points, 15 rebounds and 10 assists as the Portland Trail Blazers beat the Atlanta Hawks 127-113. Toumani Camara scored 18 points and Donovan Clingan and Dalano Banton added 11 points apiece as Portland snapped a four-game skid. Trae Young had 29 points and 15 assists for Atlanta.
Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 37 points and the Milwaukee Bucks relied on a team-record shooting performance to snap a four-game skid by winning 133-123 over the slumping and short-handed Phoenix Suns. The Bucks shot 68.9% (51 of 73) from the floor to set a franchise record for field-goal percentage. The previous record was 66.7% on Dec. 15, 1985, against Sacramento. The Suns lost their fourth straight. They were playing without Kevin Durant, Bradley Beal and Royce O’Neale. Devin Booker had 39 points and 11 assists to lead Phoenix. Ryan Rollins scored 23 and Brook Lopez had 22 for Milwaukee.
Coby White scored 28 points, Talen Horton Tucker had 27 points and the Chicago Bulls locked in a spot in the Eastern Conference play-in tournament with a 137-118 win over the Toronto Raptors. Nikola Vucevic shot 9 for 12, including 2 for 3 from 3-point range to finish with 22 points, while adding 10 rebounds and seven assists. The Raptors were led by Ja’Kobe Walter, with 17 points while Immanuel Quickley added 17 points and nine assists. The Bulls trailed by 10 only to finish the first quarter on a 30-13 run to take command.
Paolo Banchero had 24 points and 10 rebounds, Franz Wagner added 24 points and the Orlando Magic rallied to beat the San Antonio Spurs 116-105. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope added 23 points as the Magic won for the fifth time in seven games. Orlando (37-40) moved ahead of Atlanta (36-39) and into seventh place in the Eastern Conference. Harrison Barnes scored 24 points for San Antonio, which lost its fifth straight.
The last time Stephen Curry and Golden State played in Memphis, he was held without a field goal and the Warriors lost by 51 points. Curry didn’t recall the frustration from that loss in December. And there was no repeat on Tuesday night. Curry fired up 3-pointers throughout the contest, connecting on a dozen from long range on the way to a 52-point performance as the Warriors beat the Grizzlies 134-125.
Michael Malone called him Superman. At the moment, Nikola Jokic’s just super-tired. The Denver Nuggets big man can’t wait to get some sleep after a career-best 61-point night in which he played nearly 53 minutes. He played every minute after halftime of a 140-139 double-overtime loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves on Tuesday night. It’s the most points by a player in the NBA this season. Jokic also had 10 rebounds and 10 assists as he notched just the third 60-point triple double in NBA history.
Detroit’s Isaiah Stewart has been suspended for two games by the NBA and four other players from the Pistons and Minnesota Timberwolves drew one-game suspensions for the roles in an on-court altercation between the teams earlier this week. The league says Stewart got two games “based in part on his repeated history of unsportsmanlike acts." The NBA handed the one-game bans to Detroit’s Ron Holland II and Marcus Sasser along with Minnesota’s Naz Reid and Donte DiVincenzo.
NFL
The future of the tush push has been pushed until next month. NFL team owners had been set to vote Tuesday on Green Bay’s proposal to ban the play that’s helped the Philadelphia Eagles win one Super Bowl and reach another, but the proposal was tabled until May. Team owners approved modifying the kickoff rule, expanding replay assist and revising overtime rules, along with other changes. The decision to postpone the tush push vote means the debate will continue as the league seeks more information about the safety of the play. Proponents of the play and those who oppose it presented strong arguments while the league’s medical experts expressed safety concerns.
The one-year trial version of the dynamic kickoff in the NFL led to an uptick in the return rate that wasn’t quite as much as the league had hoped. Now the new form of the kickoff that is more like a scrimmage play is permanent with a change for 2025 that the league hopes will lead to a significant increase in returns. Owners voted to move touchbacks on kicks from the 30 to the 35 in hopes that more teams will kick the ball in play instead of giving up an extra 5 yards of field position. The league also approved changes to the overtime rule and expanded replay assist.
GOLF
Tiger Woods is out of action with a ruptured Achilles tendon and has plenty of time for social media. His latest move was an April Fools' Day joke saying that he had miraculously healed and would be playing at the Masters next week. He waited six minutes to say it was a joke. But there was enough reaction to show how much hope his fans still have about seeing a little more magic. The sad thing is that Woods hasn't finished closer than 12 shots to a winner in the last five years. But his presence at Augusta National is still missed.
MEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Maryland has hired Buzz Williams as its men’s basketball coach. The Terrapins quickly moved on after Kevin Willard left to take the Villanova job. Maryland says it will introduce Williams at a news conference Wednesday. Willard left for Villanova last weekend after leading the Terrapins to the Sweet 16. Williams arrives after six seasons at Texas A&M. He took the Aggies to the NCAA Tournament in each of the past three seasons. He previously was the head coach at Virginia Tech, Marquette and New Orleans.
INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION
The U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee has fired a coach and a director after The Associated Press reported that the coach was accused of sexually abusing a young biathlete. Olympic spokesperson Jon Mason says Paralympic team coach Gary Colliander and team director Eileen Carey were fired on March 14. He did not give a reason but said Colliander was put on administrative leave in December, after the AP reported the alleged abuse while he was a coach at the Maine Winter Sports Center. The U.S. Center for SafeSport, which investigates abuse in Olympic sports, is investigating Colliander. Carey was the vice president of the center when the abuse occurred and was with the Paralympic team when Colliander was hired.
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