Friday Sports: Statement Game! Plus Jr. Hockey Playoff Tee-up

NHL

Laurent Brossoit stopped 24 shots for his third shutout and the Winnipeg Jets beat the Dallas Stars 3-0. The playoff-bound Jets won their fifth consecutive game and prevented the Stars from clinching the Central Division title. Winnipeg avoided a season sweep by Dallas and matched Colorado in second place with 104 points.

Elsewhere in the NHL on Thursday:

PANTHERS 4 BLUE JACKETS 0

PANTHERS 4, BLUE JACKETS 0

SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — Sergei Bobrovsky made 25 saves to tie for the NHL lead with six shutouts, Sam Reinhart scored his 54th goal and Florida defeated Columbus.

SENATORS 3 LIGHTNING 2 SO

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Brady Tkachuk had a goal and an assist in regulation and scored the only goal of the shootout as Ottawa beat Tampa Bay.

PENGUINS 6 RED WINGS 5 OT

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Erik Karlsson scored 1:40 into overtime and the Pittsburgh Penguins bolstered their playoff odds with a 6-5 win over Detroit on Thursday night. Sidney Crosby set up Karlsson’s winner to become the 14th player in NHL history to reach 1,000 career assists. Crosby finished with a goal and two assists to move past Hall of Famer Phil Esposito and into 10th on the NHL’s all-time scoring list.

FLYERS 4, RANGERS 1

NEW YORK (AP) — Bobby Brink scored the go-ahead goal early in the second period, Samuel Ersson made 24 saves and Philadelphia snapped an eight-game losing streak with a win over New York.

SABRES 4, CAPITALS 2

BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen stopped 22 shots and the Buffalo Sabres played the role of playoff spoilers with a 4-2 win over Washington.

DEVILS 6, MAPLE LEAFS 5

TORONTO (AP) — Jesper Bratt broke a tie with 1:14 left with his second goal of the game and New Jersey beat Toronto, overcoming Maple Leafs star Auston Matthews’ NHL-leading 67th and 68th goals of the season.

ISLANDERS 3, CANADIENS 2, OT

NEW YORK (AP) — Kyle Palmieri scored at 1:17 of overtime and New York extended their winning streak to six games with a victory over Montreal.

SHARKS 3, KRAKEN 1

SEATTLE (AP) — Devin Cooley withstood a barrage of shots to make 49 saves in his fourth career start, Kyle Burroughs and Fabian Zetterlund scored less than a minute apart in the second period, and San Jose beat Seattle.

KINGS 4, FLAMES 1

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Viktor Arvidsson scored two goals and Los Angeles clinched a playoff berth with a victory over Calgary.

WHL FRIDAY (Round 2)

Red Deer at Saskatoon (Game 1)
Swift Current at Moose Jaw (Game 1)
Kelowna at Prince George (Game 1)
Everett at Portland (Game 1)

SJHL SATURDAY (Round 2)

Humboldt at Melfort (Mustangs lead 3-1)

O.J. SIMPSON

When O.J. Simpson’s death from prostate cancer was announced, the University of Southern California made no public acknowledgement of it. The silence is atypical for the school , but it’s an obvious statement in itself about the complicated relationship with one of the most accomplished athletes in USC history. That disconnect largely has been the standard for institutions in Los Angeles and across the nation for the past three decades since Simpson was charged with killing his former wife and her friend in 1994. So it’s difficult to remember that until the public course of Simpson’s life changed forever in his late 40s, he was widely perceived as an embodiment of the American dream.

MLB

Kevin Gausman takes the mound as the Toronto Blue Jays open a three-game home series against the Colorado Rockies Friday night at Rogers Centre. The Blue Jays are six-and-seven to start the year after falling 6-1 to the Seattle Mariners in extra innings on Wednesday. Vladimir Guerrero Junior leads Toronto with three home runs.

NBA

The Toronto Raptors meet the Heat in Miami tonight for their second-last game of the NBA season. Toronto sits 12th in the Eastern Conference with a 25-and-55 record and has lost 17 of 19. Miami is a game and a half behind the Philadelphia 76ers for the East’s seventh seed. The Raptors and Heat meet in Miami again Sunday to wrap up the regular season.

MASTERS

Bryson DeChambeau leads at seven under heading into Day Two of the Masters golf tournament. He’s ahead by one shot over world number one Scottie Scheffler. Yesterday’s opening round couldn’t be completed because of a two-and-a-half-hour weather delay. Tiger Woods is holding steady at one-under through 13 holes. Corey Conners of Listowel, Ontario, is the low Canadian, tied for ninth at two under.

(Canadian Press)