Avalanche Crush Sharks 6-0; Karlsson loses it after officials miss call

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San Jose Sharks defenceman Erik Karlsson sits on the bench assisted by the Sharks trainer just before throwing his helmet on the ice and receiving an unsportsmanship like conduct after taking a non call high stick to the mouth against the Colorado Avalanche in Denver Wed Mar 7, 2023 (still photo from NBC Sports and SJ Hockey Now)

By Matthew Harrington

The San Jose Sharks got a glimpse of just how far off from Stanley Cup contention they are Tuesday night in Denver, getting steamrolled by the defending Cup Champion Avalanche 6-0. The Sharks were stifled to just 13 shots, all turned aside by Alexander Georgiev.

Cale Makar and Valeri Nichushkin had four point nights and six different Avs scored in the rout. Kaapo Kahkonen made 19 saves on 24 shots against Colorado (35-21-6) and James Reimer stopped 18 of 19 in relief playing in back-to-back contests.

The Sharks (19-34-12) opened the game flat, managing only a pair of shots on goal in the first period. They found themselves trailing 3-0 after Cale Makar scored his 14th goal 4:08 into the game. Nathan MacKinnon doubled the lead at the 12:51 mark for his 26th of the year and Mikko Rantanen scored his 42nd on the power play with 2:59 left in the period. Colorado put 19 shots on goal in the period.

San Jose raised its shot total to five shots in the middle period, but again the Avs peppered the Sharks netminders to the tune of 15 shots. Nichushkin scored his 12th of the year just 1:22 into the period on a tip-in, Dennis Malgin made it 5-0 Colorado just 1:23 later and Arturi Lehkonen pitched in his 18th of the year, this one on Reimer who replaced Kahkonen after the Malgin goal.

Reimer finished up the game strong, stopping all nine Avs shots. The damage had already been done and the Sharks wound up committing two misconducts, one on Erik Karlsson and the other on Marc-Edouard Vlasic in the final period. They had 30 penalty minutes in total on the night. Karlsson was hit in the mouth with a high stick by the Avalanche’s Alex Newhook after being attended on the bench by the trainer Karlsson threw his helmet on the ice and said after the game he was disrespected by the officials Gord Dwyer and Corey Syvret for not making the high stick call.

The Sharks face the St. Louis Blues Thursday night in game three of a three game road trip. They’ll return home Saturday to face the Minnesota Wild at SAP Center.

That’s Amaury News and Commentary: Three points on why A’s are leaning towards moving to Las Vegas

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7 year old Indie Erardy shows off her newly signed baseball as Oakland Athletic players sign for the fans at Las Vegas Ballpark on Sun Mar 4, 2023 before their exhibition split squad game against the Cincinnati Reds (Las Vegas Register Review photo)

Three points on why A’s are leaning towards moving to Las Vegas

That’s Amaury News and Commentary

By Amaury Pi-González

Three big points for the Oakland A’s today and their possible move to Las Vegas are all related to money. Here they are: 1-Revenue sharing:

During the Winter Meetings in December, commissioner Rob Manfred pointed to January 15, 2024, as something of a deadline for the A’s to have a binding agreement with the City of Oakland. Under the terms of the new collective bargaining agreement, the A’s would lose their status as a recipient of revenue-sharing

(MLB teams will receive at least $100 million annually from TV rights contracts)

2-MLB relocation fee:

Commissioner Rob Manfred said that under current guidelines he has control of charging a franchise fee and has already gone to his executive council, which has endorsed the position. “That’s why I was prepared to say it publicly,” Manfred said: “If they can get it done in Vegas, there will not be a relocation fee for them.”

(How much does it cost to relocate an MLB team? An expansion fee would run at least $2.2 billion, Manfred said in April 2021, calculating the average value of major-league franchises at the time) 3-Las Vegas factor:

While the A’s played a couple of games this weekend at their Las Vegas Aviators Stadium (AAA affiliate) at Summerlin. Clark County Commission Chairman Jim Gibson told the San Francisco Chronicle that while “the governor has said no new taxes, that doesn’t mean there aren’t public revenues available” The Commissioner appeared ready to lobby state officials (in the Nevada legislation) for some “gift” close to the $750 million that Las Vegas Raiders owner Mark Davis received for a new stadium.

The Oakland A’s, according to the state of Nevada records, has recently formed a lobbying group for Nevada’s 2023 legislative session. A’s President Dave Kaval is listed among the names that make up the “Athletics Investment Group”. These lobbyists for the A’s are trying to influence legislation in Nevada’s government decisions regarding facilitating their relocation from Oakland to Sin City.

Stephen Edwin King is an American author of horror, supernatural fiction, suspense, crime, science-fiction, and fantasy novels, some adapted to many famous films. Credited with saying this: “Money talks and BS walks”.

KIQI 1010/990AM San Francisco-Bay Area and Sacramento, returns as the A’s Official Spanish flagship station with 66 live broadcasts this 2023 season, beginning Opening Night from the Oakland Coliseum at 7 PM when they host the LA Angels.

Catch Amaury Pi Gonzalez and Manolo Hernandez Douen for all the play by play of Oakland A’s on the A’s Spanish radio network and News and Commentary with Amaury at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Golden State Warriors game wrap: Another Road Loss For Warriors – Lose to Thunder 137-128

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Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) shoots as Golden State Warriors guard Donte DiVincenzo, right, defends in the first half at Oklahoma City on Tue Mar 7, 2023 (AP News photo)

Another Road Loss For Warriors – Lose to Thunder 137-128

By Barbara Mason

Tuesday night the Golden State Warriors (34-32) took on the Thunder in Oklahoma City (31-34). The Warriors are still looking to turn things around as they enter another road game searching for a winning formula that has so far eluded them this season. Anthony Lamb did not play in this game with foot soreness and Andrew Wiggins remains out.

The Warriors did not want to fall into an early hole in this game. The Warriors have seen this over and over in the first quarter of these road games. Unfortunately for Golden State it was more of the same and they trailed after the first 12 minutes 40-30 and couldn’t hold on in the end losing to the Thunder 137-128.

The Warriors began to turn things around in the second quarter and when all was said and done had shot ten three’s. They still trailed at the half but it was a manageable 68-64. Stephen Curry had 16 points and Klay Thompson had the high with 17. A real shift in favor of the Warriors could be sensed as the “Splash Brothers” got things rolling in the first half.

Golden State took a slim lead in the third quarter as this game remained very tight mid-way through the quarter 83-82 in favor of OKC. The Thunder were beasts from downtown with 14 shots made and five minutes left in the quarter. The Warriors were getting some great looks but could not connect and with 1:37 left in the quarter were faced with an 11 point deficit 101-92.

After three quarters OKC led 105-99. The Warriors have not won a game when trailing after three quarters. The good news however was that Curry was seven of eight from beyond the arc going into the fourth quarter.

The Warriors needed stops and they needed to make shots. It just didn’t happen and the Thunder rode comfortably across the finish line 137-128. You had a game with Curry scoring 40 points, seven assists and Thompson with 23 and Kuminga with 21?

Golden State hit 20 shots from beyond the arc, shoots at almost 53% and still lost. It all points squarely at the defense. With that said, the Warriors did miss too many open shots and had to many turnovers and fouls. It’s yet another road lose as this scourge continues.

Golden State has one more game left on this short road trip against the Memphis Grizzlies Thursday night. Tipoff is scheduled for 4:30.

Headline Sports podcast with Jessica Kwong: Jones joins Giants signs for $160 million; Red hot Knicks and Kings battle Thursday; plus more

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New York Giants quarterback Daniel Jones (8) hands off the ball to New York Giants running back Saquon Barkley (26) during the second quarter of an NFL football game, Sunday, Nov. 13, 2022, in East Rutherford, N.J. (AP file photo)

On Headline Sports podcast with Jessica Kwong:

#1 The New York Giants were quite happy with signing quarterback Daniel Jones in a four year $160 million deal. The Giants likewise used their non exclusive franchise tag in signing running back Saquon Barkley for $10.09 million in the 2023 season.

#2 The red hot Sacramento Kings (38-26) will be hosting the red hot New York Knicks (39-27) Thursday night at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento. Both the Knicks and Kings have won nine of their last ten games. Both teams come into Sacramento having won their last game. The Knicks lost in over time to Charlotte on Tuesday and the Kings defeating New Orleans on Monday night.

#3 The Brooklyn Nets (37-28) picked up their fifth win in 11 games after defeating the Houston Rockets (15-50) on Tuesday night in Houston. The Nets had lost four straight games before winning these last three games including against the Rockets. Have they found their way after dealing Kevin Durant to Phoenix and Kyrie Irving to Boston.

#4 Two time Kansas City Royals All Star Lorenzo Cain has hung it up he will make it official by retiring as a Kansas City Royal this May when the team gives him a day at Kaufman Stadium. Cain is going to make the Hall of Fame came home and asked his two sons if he should hang it up and they both said they wanted him home.

#5 Jessica, were getting a little of everything this spring first the Los Angeles Angels superstar Shohei Ohtani so far in two games hit two three run home runs and hit a home run while on one knee for the Japanese baseball team. Also the New York Yankees Aaron Judge belted his first spring training home run a 347 foot blast and he did it on Monday night.

Join Jessica for Headline Sports every other Wednesday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

That’s Amaury News and Commentary podcast: BoSox Turner gets 16 stitches after beaning; Clevinger no discipline after domestic violence accusation; plus more

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Boston Red Sox designated hitter Justin Turner is assisted off the field after getting hit in the mouth from a Detroit Tigers Matt Manning pitch (AP News photo)

On That’s Amaury News and Commentary podcast:

#1 Amaury, how scary does it get as Boston Red Sox designated hitter Justin Turner takes a pitch to the mouth from Detroit Tigers right hand pitcher Matt Manning. Turner walked off the field under his own power and had to get 16 stitches. The Sox reported Turner had swelling and was back home resting.

#2 Chicago White Sox pitcher Mike Clevinger was not disciplined after being accused of domestic violence by the mother of his one year daughter. According to his 24 year old girlfriend Olivia Finestead said Clevinger allegedly strangled, slapped, Finestead and threw chewing tobacco at his daughter. Clevinger was accused of throwing an i pad at Finestead.

#3 The Chicago Cubs pitcher right hander Adam Sampson was ready to pitch to his teammates in a live simulated game and had a challenge with the pitch clock not being able to throw before the 15 seconds winded down. Sampson had a hard time pacing himself and ended up throwing the ball rather than pitching it because he didn’t want to be late for the clock.

#4 Los Angeles pitcher Shohei Ohtani made some at bats count in Monday’s World Baseball Classic hitting two three run home runs for Team Japan against the Hanshin Tigers in Japan’s 8-1 win. He’s swinging the bat in a way that would make Babe Ruth proud.

#5 Oakland A’s first baseman Jesus Aguilar says he hopes to help build something good for the A’s this season. A’s manager Mark Kotsay said that he hopes to put last season behind and is looking to having a great year this year.

Amaury Pi Gonzalez has all your play by play on the Oakland A’s Spanish radio network and does News and Commentary at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Kings Huerter leads with 25, Sabonis gets triple double in 123-108 win over Pelicans

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Sacramento Kings forward Domantas Sabonis (10) is defended by New Orleans Pelicans center Jonas Valanciunas in the first quarter at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Mon Mar 6, 2023 (AP News photo)

By Jeremiah Salmonson

Sacramento Kings (38-26) Kevin Huerter scores 25 points to lead the Kings with Domantas Sabonis scoring a triple double which was his eighth triple double of the 2022-23 season. It was another home victory for the Kings defeating the visiting New Orleans Pelicans (31-34) 123-108 at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento.

Sabonis’ contribution paid off big in the scoring department helping out Huerter’s effort. Sabonis scored 19 and had 11 rebounds, 11 assists. Sabonis is the NBA leader with 52 double doubles. The Kings have now won six of their last seven games since All Star weekend back on Sun Feb 19th.

The Kings have been playing amazing ball and picking up wins that have now placed them in second seeding in the NBA Western Conference just behind the first seeded Memphis Grizzlies by a half game. Kings Keegan Murray hopes Sacramento can keep up the pace hoping they can get the home floor advantage through the post season.

Murray mentioned that the Kings have some tough stretches coming up facing teams like the New York Knicks this Thursday at Golden 1, then hit the road to face Phoenix Suns Sat Mar 11, then back in Sacramento on Mon Mar 13 against the Milwaukee Bucks.

“We want to play our first (playoff) game at home,” Murray said. “It’s not easy, we know we have a lot of tough stretches coming up. We know we have to be locked in every single night.” The third quarter was key as the Kings out scored the Pelicans by a 18 point margin 38-20 that pretty much clinched it for Sacramento. A great offensive third quarter performance considering the game was all tied up at 59 each at the half.

The Knicks have been on a roll winning nine of their last ten games and have won nine straight games defeating the Boston Celtics in their last game on 131-129 in overtime on Sunday at TD Garden in Boston. The Knicks are in fifth place in the NBA Eastern Conference. The win for the Kings is their seventh in ten games. The tip with the Knicks and Kings is at 7:00p this coming Thursday night at Golden 1.

Reimer, Sharks Ground Jets with 3-2 OT Win

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San Jose Sharks celebrate a victory over the Winnipeg Jets in Winnipeg on Mon Mar 6, 2023 (Canadian Press via AP News photo)

By Matthew Harrington

James Reimer and the San Jose Sharks stole victory from the jaws of defeat Monday night in Winnipeg, beating the Jets 3-2 in overtime. Reimer made 36 saves, Tomas Hertl scored to tie the game with five seconds left and Logan Couture potted the game winner in OT for the win.

Nino Niederreiter and Nate Schmidt scored for the Jets (36-25-3) who have now lost eight of their last ten. Nikolai Knyzhov made his season debut for the Sharks (19-33-12), making his first regular season appearance since May 12th, 2021. He played 14:19 with one hit, one block and one penalty.

The Sharks held a 1-0 lead despite being outshot 14-7 after the first period thanks to a Steven Lorentz goal with 5:47 left in the period. David Rittich failed to put his glove on a loose puck that Lorentz scooped up for a backhand amongst of sea of bodies. Oskar Lindblom and Levin Labanc picked up the assists.

Niederreiter tied the game 6:05 into the second on a wrist shot, beating Reimer for the first time on the Jets 19th shot of the game for his 200th career goal and 19th of the season. Schmidt scored with 5:07 left in regulation and the Jets seemed on their way to victory.

The Sharks pulled Reimer trailing 2-1 and were rewarded for the risk. Erik Karlsson’s point slapper was blocked by Blake Wheeler but the shot richocheted perfectly to Hertl just wide of the slot. Hertl rifled a shot past Rittich with 11 seconds left in regulation, his 17th goal of the year forcing overtime.

Couture picked up his second point of the night on the game winner, with Karlsson springing him on a breakaway after picking up a rebound in the Sharks end for a second assist of the night. Couture’s 22nd of the year went backhand through Rittich’s five hole 1:21 into overtime.

After beating the Jets, third in the Central Division standings, the Sharks face another tough task Tuesday night. They face the defending Stanley Cup champion Colorado Avalanche in the Mile High City.

Golden State Warriors podcast with Barbara Mason: Warriors struggles continue road record at 7-24; Morant won’t face Warriors on Thursday

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Look whose back this was Stephen Curry’s first return since his leg injury after missing 11 games. Here is Curry against the Los Angeles Lakers at Crypto.com Arena on Sun Mar 5, 2023 (AP News photo)

On the Warriors podcast with Barbara:

#1 The Warriors had a terrific home stand and tested their road legs after struggling defensively all season on the road. Sunday’s performance didn’t enhance their road record dropping the contest to the Lakers 113-105.

#2 Golden State will welcomed Stephen Curry back while still awaiting the return of Andrew Wiggins. The Lakers were without LeBron James who suffered a right foot tendon injury February 26 against the Dallas Mavericks and will more than likely be lost to the team for much of this month.

#3 The final quarter of this game was tight and was tied with 5:16 left in regulation 91-91. Golden State had some opportunities but suffered far too many empty possessions which was making a huge difference in this game. 

#4 The crazy road losses continue and this team needs to figure this out with a lot of games coming up away from Chase and time running out on the season.

#5 Tuesday night the Warriors will take on the Thunder in Oklahoma City. Tipoff is scheduled for 5:00 PM. Another road game do you find it that the Warriors can struggle in OKC too?

Join Barbara for the Warriors podcasts Mondays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

San Jose Barracuda podcast with Marko Ukalovic: Cuda try to rebound from loses against Reign Wed night

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San Jose Barracuda lost another tough contest to the Coachella Valley Firebirds

On the Barracuda podcast with Marko:

#1 On their second of back-to-backs San Jose Barracuda (22-27-1-4) dropped the game late in the third against the Coachella Valley Firebirds (35-10-4-2) by a final of 5-4.

#2 Similar to their last game the Barracuda found themselves down early as Kyle Criscuolo got a penalty for hooking just 1:47 in. San Jose’s PK unit came up big and killed it off keeping the Firebirds off the scoreboard.

#3 Coachella Valley continued their momentum as Alexander True scored getting his ninth goal of the season and making it 3-2. At the end of the first the shots favored San Jose 16-13.

#4 Late in the period the Firebirds pushed for a goal and got one as Tye Kartye scored his 17th goal of the season to break the tie. San Jose pulled their goalie but could not find a response as the Firebirds held on to win 5-4.

#5 San Jose’s next game will be Wednesday at 7 p.m. against the Ontario Reign on the road.

Join Marko for the San Jose Barracuda podcasts at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

That’s Amaury News and Commentary: A’s Roll the Dice Weekend in Vegas

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A’s played two game series in Las Vegas against the Cincinnati Reds at triple A affiliate Las Vegas Aviators park Cashman Park in Las Vegas on Sun Mar 5, 2023 (photo from mlb.com)

A’s Roll the Dice: Weekend in Vegas

That’s Amaury News and Commentary

Amaury Pi-González

One of the many Frank Sinatra hits over decades was “Luck be A Lady” which he also sang in the 1955 film “Guys and Dolls”, which also featured Marlon Brando. Sinatra and the famous Rat Pack was the King of Las Vegas, years before Elvis Presley arrived in Sin City. I had the pleasure of seeing both of them live in concert, there was nothing like it. If the Oakland A’s move to Las Vegas, there will also be nothing like it because it would be the first time in history that Las Vegas, Nevada would be home to a major league baseball franchise. And they will have 81 shows each summe

“Big League Weekend” A’s sent a split-squad of players to Las Vegas for two games against the Cincinnati Reds. The games were played at Las Vegas Ballpark, the home of the Oakland A’s Triple-a affiliate, the Aviators in Summerlin, a 20 minute drive from the strip.

Las Vegas has been home to a Triple-A team since 1983. This weekend the folks had the chance of watching the 2023 Oakland A’s in action. In 1996, the A’s played their first six games of their regular season at Cashman Field, Las Vegas, while the Oakland Coliseum was still under renovation with the return of the Raiders in 1995 from Los Angeles.

Remember? Yes, the Raiders who are now permanent residents of…Las Vegas. (Raiders’ owner Al Davis who moved to LA signed a letter of intent to bring the team back to Oakland in return the City of Oakland renovated the Coliseum (Mt.Davis) to the tune of millions of dollars which left Oakland taxpayers on the hook)

Quotes from this weekend series:

(Saturday)

–Jason Giambi was the 2000 American League MVP for the A’s and he is all for the A’s to make their permanent residence in Las Vegas, where he has lived since 1998. He mentioned either the A’s or an expansion team. Giambi was at Saturday’s game with his traveling youth baseball team, the Henderson Hawks, and spoke about the possibility of the A’s moving to Las Vegas. He said he felt for “some of the greatest fans in the world” with an A’s move, “But also,” he added, “to be relevant anymore in baseball, you have to be competitive.”

A new stadium, in a new market, might allow for that. Giambi also said “there is no competition for the summer sports dollar in Las Vegas “I came here as a Triple-A player, and it was the best five days of my life. Are you kidding me?” “There’s nothing like it. You can wake up in the middle of night, 2 o’clock in the morning, go get breakfast, go watch a show, anything you want to do. It’s a little bit of the Wild, Wild West. It’s not like that anywhere else.”

Saturday score: Reds beat the A’s 10-9, in front of 8,805 paid fans (capacity at Aviators Stadium is 10,000) the attendance was 88% of capacity.

–A’s Manager Mark Kotsay: “It’s no secret that we’ve been pursuing paths in Oakland and Vegas. So maybe there’s more buzz around it because we’re going right now and the process has seemed to be shifted a little bit,” Kotsay said, “For us as an organization, we continue to pursue both in Oakland and in Vegas and we call that the parallel path. For us, we’re always looking for the opportunity in front of us.”

–Don Logan, president and COO of the Triple-A Aviators, told ESPN.”It makes sense. My perspective, make the best deal you can in Vegas and start to turn this community on” “Las Vegas offers a dynamic that no other team has. We have 45 million visitors annually in this market, and that’s what we want — heads in beds. That’s what Las Vegas is about.”Logan also mentioned that a retractable-roof stadium would be needed for the summer when temperatures regularly hit 110 degrees who added that Las Vegas first look at the A’s in a ‘quiet examination’ for a potential relocation in the year 2004.

–David Forst, general manager of the Oakland A’s said “I’m hoping the A’s get a stadium. I don’t take sides. The only thing that affects the way we operate in baseball operations is actually having a facility. “We really can’t spend a lot of time thinking about the where right now.”

Sunday score: Reds beat the A’s 12-4, in front of 8,024 paid fans.

Next for the A’s: With three weeks of Spring Training left, they will face Colombia who is one of the teams in the World Baseball Classic that starts the competition this week. A’s will open regular season on March 30th when they host the LA Angels, first pitch at 7:07.

Join Amaury Pi Gonzalez and Manolo Hernandez Douen for all the play by play of Oakland A’s baseball on the A’s Spanish radio network and catch That’s Amaury News and Commentary at http://www.sportsradioservice.com