Cal Bears basketball podcast with Morris Phillips: After two straight loses to LA schools Cal looks to pick up the pace in Washington Wed night

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California guard Jalen Celestine (32) shoots against UCLA guard Tyger Campbell (10) at Haas Pavilion in Berkeley on Sat Jan 8, 2022 (AP News photo)

On the Cal Bears basketball podcast with Morris:

#1 It wasn’t much of a contest as the Cal Bears (9-7) went down to defeat for the second time to a LA university this time to the UCLA Bruins (10-1) 60-53 a eight point win as the Bruins controlled the offense from wire to wire.

#2 Once again Cal guard Andre Kelly did most of the heavy lifting coming away with 22 points. Kelly executed inside the paint and had a multiple dunk show with one displaying some hang time but regardless Cal came up short.

#3 Morris, knowing what the USC Trojans and UCLA Bruins would bring in this week to Haas Pavilion it really wasn’t a surprise for Cal head coach Mark Fox but from what you saw did the Bears leave that best effort out on the floor this week.

#4 The Bruins had two players in double figures with heavy NBA potential guard Tyger Campbell with a team leading 17 points and coming right behind him guard Jaime Jaquez Jr with 14 points to contribute to the Bruins tenth win of the season.

#5 It’s off to Seattle and the Washington Huskies (6-7) in Cal’s next contest. The Huskies have won four of their last eight games and got a six point win over the Utah Utes (8-7) 74-68 on Thu Jan 6 in Utah. Morris after getting a double dose of loses this week the Bears are certainly looking to get back in the win column in their visit to Washington on Wed Jan 12th.

Join Morris for the Cal Bears podcasts each Monday morning at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Golden State Warriors podcast with Barbara Mason: After 941 days of waiting Big Splashy Return for Thompson

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Klay Thompson is seen here on Mon Jan 3, 2022 taking practice shots before the Golden State Warriors host the Miami Heat at the Chase Center. Thompson debuted in his first game back in two and half years on Sun Jan 9, 2022 against the Cleveland Cavaliers at Chase Center (AP News photo)

On the Warriors podcast with Barbara:

#1 Talk about Klay Thompson’s return?

#2 Kevon Looney had an exceptional defensive game that played a great part in this win.

#3 Stephen Curry sure got back on track after two loses in a row the most the team has suffered since the season started.

#4 What are Steve Kerr’s thoughts about the return of Thompson?

#5 The next game up for the Warriors will be against the Memphis Grizzlies on Tuesday night in Memphis. How do you see this game?

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

An Evening To Remember at Chase; Thompson Back as Warriors handle Cavs 96-82

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Golden State Warriors guard Klay Thompson, right, puts up a three pointer over Cleveland Cavaliers forward Lauri Markkanen (24) at the Chase Center in San Francisco on Sun Jan 9, 2022 (AP News photo)

An Evening To Remember at Chase Warriors Handle Cavs 96-82

By Barbara Mason

Sunday night fans got to celebrate the biggest game in Chase history. It seems as it we have been waiting a lifetime for the return of the Golden State Warriors (30-9) Klay Thompson. All the blood, sweat and tears that this guy has endured will come to fruition tonight. Win or lose, this game will be an unforgettable welcome home for the phenomenal Klay Thompson. The splash brothers are back!!! What a way to welcome them back as they earned a 96-82 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers (22-18)

“Tonight is about showing our appreciation for what he has had to go through individually and express our affection for him. In a lot of ways it will be a very difficult game to lock in and focus on. That’s the challenge for the group amidst all this emotion,” said Head coach Steve Kerr before the game.

The Warriors took on the Cleveland Cavaliers looking for number 30 of the season. The Warriors will have to focus with all the hoopla that will be going on but they will not be alone. The Cavaliers will also have to block out what will be the loudest crowd that they have ever encountered.

The Warriors will be looking for some better shooting from downtown. They have come off of two forgettable games this season, not only losing two in a row but also two tough games shooting seven of 33 against the Pelicans on Thursday night and five of 28 against Dallas on three’s.

At 11:13 in the first quarter we got to see Klay’s first NBA bucket in 2 1/2 years; a textbook floater in traffic. The Cavaliers will have the challenge of trying to contain both Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson. After eleven minutes it became clear that the three-point drought had come to an end as Curry started the game four for four from downtown. The Warriors led after one quarter 24-21.

At the half the Warriors continued to hold the lead 51-46. In the second quarter Thompson had his first dunk and his first three of the game. The Warriors were only shooting 37% but it was their defense that kept the score in favor of Golden State. Kevon Looney had 10 rebounds in the half and Porter had six for a great defensive effort. Curry finished the half with 18 points, the only Warrior in double digits.

The Cavaliers had managed to hang with the Warriors until the third quarter. Golden State came unleashed in the third and extended their lead to 79-60. Looney had an amazing 16 rebounds in the quarter close to his all-time high.

The Cavaliers made a nice bid cutting the Warriors 24 point lead to ten in the fourth quarter but it just wasn’t enough. The Warriors shooting had cooled off in the final quarter but picked back up in the closing minutes. The final was 96-82. .

What could be better than seeing Curry and Thompson together again? Why a win with Curry and Thompson playing their first game together and that’s exactly what they got, the first of many. Thompson was on fire with his signature snarl evident throughout the game.

He had 17 points in 20 minutes of play and didn’t look the least bit winded. Curry finished with 28 points. Looney was amazing breaking his previous rebound record clocking 18. The entire team had a great defensive showing which was needed since the team only shot 39%.

“I was nervous to start. I am so grateful for this fan base. There were four or five shots that I should have made but I’m just thankful to be out here,” said Thompson after the Game. “:I am excited for the future. I’m just happy.”

Next up for the Warriors will be the Memphis Grizzlies on Tuesday. Tipoff is schedule for 5:00 PM.

Big night by Simons helps Blazers down Kings 103-88

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Portland Trail Blazers guard Ben McLemore, right, and Sacramento Kings guard Tyrese Haliburton (left) go for the ball at the Moda Center in Portland on Sun Jan 9, 2022 (AP News photo)

By Daniel Dullum
Sunday, January 9, 2022

Anfernee Simons poured in 31 points, Jusuf Nurkic nearly put together a triple-double, and the Portland Trail Blazers defeated Sacramento 103-88 Sunday night at Moda Center at the Rose Quarter in Portland.

It was the fourth straight loss for the Kings, while Portland snapped a two-game skid.
Nurkic scored 14 points, pulled down 16 rebounds and collected nine assists for the Trail Blazers. Nassir Little and Ben McLemore each added 13 points for Portland. Simons finished with seven 3-pointers.

Tyrese Haliburton led the Kings with 17 points and nine assists, followed by Alex Len with 16 points and 10 rebounds. De’Aaron Fox had 14 points, Harrison Barnes scored 13 and Buddy Hield scored 10 off the Sacramento bench.

The Trail Blazers never trailed in the contest. Simons, filling in for Damian Lillard, hit a 3-pointer at the 7-minute mark of the fourth quarter to give Portland a 90-70 lead, its biggest of the game.
Sacramento then went on a 10-2 run to pull within 92-80. Simons responded with another 3 to halt the Kings rally with 4:36 remaining.

Fox’s start was a game-time decision because he’s nursing a sore right shoulder. Maurice Harkness sat this game out due to a sore right ankle. Richaun Holmes and Damian Jones were absent from the Kings lineup due to health and safety protocols.

The Kings return home Monday to host Cleveland, the first game of a five-game homestand.

Raiders Carlson does it again boots Vegas into post season defeat Chargers 35-32 in OT

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Los Angeles Chargers free safety Derwin James Jr (33) puts pressure on the Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Derek Carr (4) as he gets a pass away at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas on Sun Jan 9, 2022 in the final regular season game of 2021-22 (AP News photo)

By Rich Perez

Las Vegas Raiders beat writer

Las Vegas Raiders kicker Daniel Carlson booted a 47 yard field goal right as time ran out in overtime against the Los Angeles Chargers at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas to help defeat the Chargers 35-32. It was the fourth consecutive win for the Raiders and the fourth straight game the Raiders won by three or less points.

This one really counted big as the win puts the Raiders into the post season the Raiders needed to win this final game of the regular season to advance to post season. The win eliminates the Chargers and helps the Pittsburgh Steelers advance to post season as well.

The Raiders who were down at one time in the game 17-0 came back on Los Angeles converting scores on fourth down ending up overtaking the Chargers 29-22. The Chargers made a last few seconds of the fourth quarter come back of their own when quarterback Justin Herbert threw a 12 yard pass to receiver Mike Williams to tie up the game 29-29 and force it into overtime.

The Raiders and Chargers proceeded to hit field goals to make it stay knotted up at 32-32. Carlson came in and got field position in the closing seconds of overtime to hit a 47 yarder and put the Raiders in the post season with the 35-32 win. Ironically Carlson was this week’s AFC Special Teams Player of the Week.

Raiders quarterback Derek Carr went 20-36 for 186 yards, and two touchdowns. The Raiders got help from their wide receiver Hunter Renfrow who caught two touchdown passes and running back Josh Jacobs carried 26 times and picked up 132 yards and a touchdown.

The Raiders prior to winning these last four in a row had lost five out of six previous to that run. The Raiders had dealt with plenty of adversity, having their former coach Jon Gruden forced to resign over racist and misogynistic emails, then wide receiver Henry Ruggs III DUI manslaughter charge in killing Tina Tintor in a drunken driving charge slamming into Tintor’s car killing her and her dog, then Damon Arnette who was released from the team for taking a video of himself carrying a automatic weapon with a scope and making threats to kill a fan on social media. In spite of all of these off field distractions the Raiders persevered and weathered the storm to make the post season.

Rich Perez does the Raiders podcasts each Friday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

49ers overcome 17-point deficit and defeat Rams 27-24 in an overtime classic

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San Francisco 49ers kicker Robbie Gould (9) and Kyle Juszczyk (44) celebrate after Gould’s field goal in overtime to defeat the Los Angeles Rams at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles on Sun Jan 9, 2022 (AP News photo)

by Marko Ukalovic

LOS ANGELES — It was a Hollywood ending, but not for the team in the blue and yellow.

The San Francisco 49ers overcame a 14-3 halftime deficit to defeat the Los Angeles Rams 27-24 in overtime on Sunday afternoon at SoFi Stadium.

San Francisco finished 10-7 on the season clinched the sixth seed in the NFC. They will travel out to Dallas to take on the Cowboys in the wild card round of the playoffs. Los Angeles (12-5), despite the loss, finished first in the NFC West as the Arizona Cardinals lost to the Seattle Seahawks. They dropped to the fourth seed in the NFC and will host the Arizona Cardinals in the wild card round.

Los Angeles controlled the play in the first half. Their first two drives consumed over 15 minutes as quarterback Matthew Stafford methodically led his offense down the field with a nice balance where they were able to convert five of their first six third-down conversions.

Matt Gay capped a 12-play 61-yard drive with a 43 yard field goal.

On the Rams next possession Cooper Kupp set up Los Angeles inside the redzone with a 46-yard reception. Tyler Higbee scored a two-yard touchdown reception to give LA a 10-lead.

It was a rough start for the 49er’s offense and quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo in the first half. Garoppolo had a fumble after a 14-yard sack (the Niners were able to recover the ball) and an interception as the Rams defense controlled the line of scrimmage.

San Francisco wasn’t able to get the running game going either as they ran for just 10 yards in the first half. Their special teams also performed poorly when they allowed a 31-yard punt return by Brandon Powell that set up the Rams in good field position.

Los Angeles took advantage of the punt return when Stafford found Higbee for his second touchdown of the game, a 15-yard leaping grab along the sidelines.

San Francisco gained momentum at the end of the first half when they went 61 yards on six plays on the final 38 seconds of the second quarter that resulted in a 42-yard field goal by Robbie Gould.

The 49ers came out with some mojo to start the second half. Garoppolo led them on a seven play 75-yard drive capped off with a 16-yard rushing touchdown by Deebo Samuel. It was the eighth rushing touchdown for Samuel this season for the hybrid wide receiver.

San Francisco’s defense dominated the second half as they forced four punts and a turnover. Emmanuel Moseley intercepted Stafford on Los Angeles’ second possession.

The 49ers ran the ball down the Rams’ throat as they tied it up at 17-17. 10 of the 11-play drive were runs as the offensive line controlled the trenches. San Francisco’s 11th play was a trick play that caught the Rams off guard. Samuel took a handoff and threw a 24-yard touchdown to Juaun Jennings who was left all alone down the right sideline.

San Francisco run for 125 of its 135 rushing yards in the second half.

Kupp was the catalyst when Los Angeles went up with 24-17 with 2:29 left in the fourth quarter. Kupp had a 30-yard reception to start the drive and ended it with a four-yard touchdown reception, his team leading 16th of the season.

San Francisco looked to have been done when Von Miller sacked Garopollo with two minutes remaining and forced the 49ers to punt.

However, the tenacious defense of San Francisco forced a three and out as the Niners used all their timeouts to get one more possession with 1:27 remaining.

Garopollo marched the 49ers down the field on a five-play 88-yard drive. He completed a 12-yard touchdown to Jennings with 26 seconds left to send the game to overtime.

The 49ers won the toss and drove 69 yards down the field on 12 plays the resulted in a Gould 24-yard field goal.

49ers rookie cornerback Aubrey Thomas sealed the deal when intercepted Stafford on a deep pass down the right sideline.

Garopollo finished 23 of 32 for 316 yards with one touchdown, two interceptions and a QB rating of 87.5. Running back Elijah Mitchell ran an efficient 85 yards on 21 carries. Brandon Aiyuk led the 49ers in receiving with six catches for 107 yards. Jennings finished with six catches for 94 yards to go along with his two receiving touchdowns.

Stafford finished 21 of 32 for 238 yards with three touchdowns, two interceptions and a QB rating of 93.0. Kupp had another outstanding game as he led all receivers with seven catches for 118 yards and one touchdown. Sony Michell had just 43 yards on 21 carries.

San Francisco sacked Stafford five times to go along with their two interceptions.

GAME NOTES: San Francisco finished 9-for-14 on third down conversions. Los Angeles was 10-for-17.

San Francisco swept the season series and have won six in a row over their NFC West rival.

UP NEXT: San Francisco takes on the Dallas Cowboys from AT&T Stadium. Date and time TBD.

Blichfeld’s heroics propel Barracuda over Silver Knights 6-3

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by Marko Ukalovic

SAN JOSE — Joachim Blichfeld helped the San Jose Barracuda save face and his head coach reach a new milestone

Blichfeld scored the eventual game winning goal late in the third period as the ‘Cuda responded after giving up a three-goal lead in the third period in a 6-3 victory over the Henderson Silver Knights on Saturday evening at SAP Center.

For San Jose head coach Roy Sommer, it was his 800th win of his AHL career. He already holds the record for most wins by a coach in the history of the league.

“I’m glad it’s over with,” Sommer said with relief after the game. “A lot of wins, a lot of years it took to get it. (Doing it) with the same organization, I guess it makes it that much sweeter.”

San Jose snapped its two-game losing streak. Henderson had its four-game winning streak end with the loss.

Cole Moberg found Blichfeld in the left slot and the Danish native sniped home a wrist shot past Silver Knights goalie Dylan Ferguson for his 11th goal of the season with 5:40 remaining in the third period to give San Jose a 4-3 lead.

“We talked before the faceoff and I said I was pulling back and he (Molberg) found me. I was really wide open, and I just went for it and luckily it went in,” Blichfeld said.

San Jose (12-15-1-0) drew first blood in the first period. Joachim Blichfeld put a backhander wide of the net. The puck caromed off the back boards back in front the crease where Sasha Chmelevski cashed in a point-blank shot past Ferguson for his sixth goal of the season at the 12:13 mark.

A scary moment happened earlier in the opening frame. Henderson forward Colt Conrad slammed headfirst into the end boards while chasing after a loose puck. Conrad hobbled off the ice with blood rushing from his leg into the Zamboni area before being attended to medically. He left the area on a stretcher and did not return to the game.

Henderson (15-8-2-1) outshot San Jose 8-7 in the first period but headed into the first intermission trailing by a goal as ‘Cuda goalie Alexei Melnichuk played a perfect period.

San Jose doubled its lead on the power play early in the second period. John Leonard fired a shot on net that Krystof Hrabik wasn’t able to put in the rebound. Chmelevski crashed in while Ferguson was down on his back and slipped the puck into the net for his second goal of the game and seventh of the season at the 4:03 mark.

Silver Knights center Pavel Dorofeyev was unlucky when he rang a wrist shot off the cross bar late in the middle frame off a two-on-one short-handed opportunity.

The Barracuda scored its third unanswered goal a minute into the third period. Leonard led an odd man attack and from along the left boards found Jake McGrew in between the face off circles. McGrew wired a wrist shot past Ferguson to the short side for his fourth goal of the season at the 1:05 mark.

Henderson did not go down quietly as they scored two goals in a 54 second span. Jonas Rondbjerg wired a wrist shot from the left slot that beat Melnichuk for his seventh goal of the season at the 4:42 mark.

Then Adam Brooks centered a pass from behind the net out to an open Sven Bartschi who buried a one-timer past Melnichuk for his fifth goal of the season at the 5:36 mark.

The Silver Knights scored the equalizer when Ben Jones made a backhand centering pass from behind the net and Reid Duke slammed home a one-timer past Melnichuk for his first goal of the season at the 11:56 mark.

Overlooked at the end was Chmelevski completing his first career AHL hattrick when he scored an empty net goal, his eighth of the season, at the 17:45 mark after Henderson pulled Ferguson for an extra attacker.

“Obviously I think we’ll (Sommer and I) both remember it,” Chmelevski said. “It feels good. I’m most proud of how the team responded after they tied it up. That’s not easy to give up a three-goal lead like that. But we responded the right way. That’s what counts.”

Mark Alt completed the game’s scoring with his own empty netter, his second of the season, from deep inside the ‘Cuda zone with 1:35 remaining in the game to seal the victory.

Melnichuk finished the game stopping 28 of the 31 shots he faced to earn the victory. Ferguson made 26 saves on 30 shots in the losing effort.

GAME NOTES: San Jose finished 1-for-4 on the power play. Henderson was 0-for-3.

The Three Stars of the Game were: 1) Chmelevski 2) Leonard 3) Blichfeld

The San Jose Sharks have informed Evander Kane that he has been placed on unconditional waivers with intent to terminate his contract for breach of his NHL Standard Player Contract and for violation of the AHL COVID-19 protocols. The Club will have no further comment on this matter.

The Barracuda are now 3-6-1-0 lifetime against the Golden Knights’ top affiliate, with all three wins coming in San Jose.

UP NEXT: San Jose continue their four-game homestand on Wednesday 1/12 as they host the Tucson Roadrunners at 7:00pm at SAP Center.

No Margin For Error: No. 5 UCLA too stingy for Cal’s tastes, Bears fall 60-52

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By Morris Phillips

BERKELEY, CA–Coach Mark Fox stalked the sidelines, pestered the refs, incited the Haas Pavilion crowd, and as always, had the full attention of his team, but in the end, Fox had to tip his cap.

Visiting UCLA just brought too much to the table.

In a defensive struggle, the No. 5 Bruins simply were too stingy, and wore Cal down in their 60-52 victory.

“There’s no shame in laying it out there against the best teams and falling short. It doesn’t mean that you’re a failure,” Fox said. “We failed today, but these kids competed in a way that I was really pleased with.”

The Bears had success defensively, limiting UCLA to 60 points and a horrible night shooting from three (4 for 18), but in the game’s waning moments Cal’s resolve lessened and a pair of Bruins were left wide open to hit back-breaking, 3-pointers. Johnny Juzang’s three put UCLA up 55-43 with 3:28 remaining.

And how did Cal’s big effort defensively come to such an unsightly finish? Probably the result of climbing uphill all night, trailing for the game’s final 23 minutes, and realizing UCLA’s defense, which forced 15 turnovers, wasn’t going to relent.

“We’ve got to stop other teams from scoring,” UCLA’s Cody Riley said. “When we come out, we’re not always going to make shots. We can’t rely on making shots. It’s the defensive side where we win the ballgame.”

Riley’s presence in the paint was a welcome sight for his teammates, who fashioned an unlikely trip to the Final Four last spring without him due to injuries. With him, Cal was made to suffer as two of their top three scorers, Grant Anticevich and Jordan Shepherd, were harassed into horrible shooting nights. The attention paid to Anticevich and Shepherd allowed Andre Kelly the space to make 11 of his 14 shots, but a one-man show isn’t the precursor to an upset. For the most part, Cal was denied entry into the lane, and their 1 for 14 shooting from three did little to compensate for their lack of easier baskets.

“I knew that we were going to take Cal’s best shot because I know what Mark Fox is made of and I know how upset he was with their defense Thursday,” UCLA coach Mick Cronin said. “They gave up 50 points in the paint (versus USC). They were minus-38 in points in the paint. I can only imagine their film session and their practice yesterday. So we told our guys it was going to be World War III. We were probably going to have to grind it out. We do a good job at taking care of the ball. We’re top 10 in the country in that. It gives us a chance. Eventually we knocked down some shots.”

Tyger Campbell, the orchestrator of UCLA’s attack finished with 17 points, four assists. Jaime Jaquez, Jr. contributed 14, and Riley added 9. Juzang missed seven of his 10 shots, but buried the big 3-pointer late to make his 3 for 10 shooting more impactful.

Sharks Beat Flyers 3-2 in OT With Hertl Hat Trick

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The San Jose Sharks Tomas Hertl is jubilant after nailing the game winning goal in overtime against the Philadelphia Flyers at the Wells Fargo Arena in Philadelphia on Sat Jan 8, 2022 (AP News photo)

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks defeated the Philadelphia Flyers 3-2 in overtime, again, on Saturday. It was the same score as on December 30 in San Jose. Tomas Hertl scored all three Sharks goals and Adin Hill made 29 saves for the win. Brent Burns had 3 assists and led the team with 29:35 TOI. James van Riemsdyk scored both Flyers goals and Martin Jones made 44 saves in the loss.

Logan Couture and Lane Pedersen are still out on the COVID list. Erik Karlsson, James Reimer, Rudolfs Balcers and Jacob Middleton are all out with injuries.

After the game, Sharks Head Coach Bob Boughner talked about how Tomas Hertl helped balance out those absences:

“What I loved about it, even when we got down 2-0, even in the last two games, he’s taken on a huge void, leadership role, And he’s saying ‘it’s alright, we’re still in this, we’ve got this, let’s keep going, let’s keep working. We’re playing well.’ So Tommy was just more than being the player of the game, you know, he was pretty inspirational in the locker room and on the bench tonight.”

The games was scoreless for 40 minutes. The shots were close, 15-13 Flyers in the first, 13-10 Sharks in the second. Each team had one power play. The Sharks power play had two shots and their penalty kill gave up one. With the teams so close in so many aspects, it was no wonder they were tied at 0 going into the final frame.

The Sharks had some good chances in the first minute of the third, but, just as that minute expired, James van Riemsdyk got around Marc-Edouard Vlasic and broke away for a shot from the face-off circle. The puck went by Adin Hill and into the top corner. Assists went to Oskar Lindblom and Kevin Hayes.

The Flyers scored again at 6:47, this time on the power play. Cam York sent the puck to the net and it went off of van Riemsdyk, then bounced over Hill. Assists went to York and Cam Atkinson.

Tomas Hertl got one back for the Sharks at 7:47. Timo Meier made a quick back-hand pass from just above the goal line. Hertl was at the net ready to put it away. Assists went to Meier and Brent Burns.

Hertl put the puck in the net again at 14:29. In the midst of net-front traffic, he kicked the puck to his stick for a backhand past Jones on the far side. Assists again went to Meier and Burns.

The Sharks out-shot the Flyers 20-5 in the third period. Each team had a power play. the Sharks had two shots on theirs and the Flyers got one that went in.

Hertl completed his hat trick with the Sharks’ first shot in overtime, 24 seconds in. Brent Burns won the puck in the corner at the Sharks’ end and got the puck to Hertl. Hertl carried it the other way, and by the time he reached the Flyers blue line, Timo Meier was there for a two-on-one.

The face-off battle went back and forth from period to period. The Sharks won 61% in the third, but the Flyers won 52% in the first and 75% in the second, and the only face-off in overtime.

The Sharks next play on Tuesday in San Jose against the Detroit Red Wings at 7:30 PM PT.

In other news, the Sharks announced that they have put Evander Kane on unconditional waivers for the purpose of terminating his contract. The statement specified that this was “for breach of his NHL Standard Player Contract and for violation of the AHL COVID-19 protocols.”

If that termination goes through, the Sharks will be free from all salary obligations to Kane and his salary will come off of their salary cap.

NHL podcast with Matt Harrington: Ovechkin close to winning Hart Trophy; Wild’s Kaprizov out for tonight vs. Washington; plus more

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The Washington Capitals Alexander Ovechkin a three time MVP winner is up for the Hart Trophy Award (NHL.com file photo)

On the NHL podcast with Matt Harrington:

#1 The Washington Capitals Alexander Ovechkin who has won the MVP three times is up for the Hart Trophy so far with 24 goals, 50 points, and has helped the Capitals to get to first place in the Metropolitan Division.

#2 The Boston Bruins Trent Fredric hit the Minnesota Wild’s Kirill Kaprizov hitting him into the boards and Kaprizov’s skates got caught up with his teammate Matt Grzelcyk receiving an upper body injury at 10:09 of the second period in the 3-2 Wild win on Thursday night. Kaprizov will not play against the Washington Capitals tonight.

#3 The St Louis Blues dropped their odds a bit losing right winger Vladimir Tarasenko, defensemen Scott Perunovich, and Jake Walman to Coronavirus protocols. Each will miss two games after testing positive for Coronavirus.

#4 The Vegas Golden Knights know how to spoil a reunion as they defeated the New York Rangers 5-1 in the return of former Knights head coach Gerrard Gallant. Gallant was the Knights first coach in their franchise history before being replace by Peter DeBoer on Jan 15, 2020.

#5 Three games were canceled in Canadian cities due to attendance restrictions New Jersey had two games postponed @ Montreal Jan 15 and at Toronto Jan 17th. The Chicago Blackhawks at Edmonton Oilers were postponed for Jan 18. The Ottawa Senators had three games postponed.

#6 The San Jose Sharks gave Evander Kane his unconditional release today because of a fake Covid 19 card and he will no longer be skating for the Sharks minor league team the San Jose Barracuda. Kane has ability but because of off ice issues is no longer with San Jose.

Join Matt for the NHL podcasts each Saturday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com