BUFFALO, N.Y. -- Buffalo Sabres rookie forward Victor Olofsson has tied an NHL record by becoming the fourth player to score each of his first six career goals on the power play.

Olofsson made it six in a row with a one-timer off Jack Eichel's pass into the right circle to open the scoring 5:04 into the first period against Montreal on Wednesday night. The Swede's streak dates to the end of last season, when he scored twice in two games.

Winnipeg's Craig Norwich in 1979-80, Hartford's Sylvain Turgeon in 1983-84 and the New York Islanders' Jeff Norton, from 1987-88 to 1989-90, share the record.

Nicknamed "Goal-ofsson" by Sabres fans, the 24-year-old Olofsson was selected in the seventh round of the 2014 draft. He spent five seasons playing in the Swedish Elite League before signing with the Sabres in April 2018.

Club matches may be on hiatus for the next 10 days, but that doesn't mean that there isn't some tasty football morsels to tuck into. Nick Miller takes a look at this week's Euro qualifiers.

JUMP TO: Dutch need some courage | France limping into Reykjavik | All eyes on England | Can Ramsey inspire Wales? | Danes wary of cheesed Swiss | Kosovo needs some luck | Paint drying, grass growing, and Ireland | ESPN's fearless predictions

THE WEEKEND'S BIG QUESTIONS

Will the Netherlands be able to deliver on their promise?

The last year or so has seen a nascent revival in the Dutch national team's fortunes: From not qualifying for either of the last two major tournaments, they ripped into the Nations League and ultimately came second to Portugal in the summer. Were they back? Well, they were getting there, with an improving collection of talent that includes, in Virgil van Dijk and Matthijs de Ligt, probably the best central defensive pairing in international football.

But they're not absolutely "back" just yet -- in fact, they're not even in the automatic qualification spots, three points behind Northern Ireland with a game in hand. They face the Northern Irish on Thursday, knowing that they have to win unless they want the last round of games to be very uncomfortable indeed. They have the security of a playoff place if they do slip up, but if they lose then they will be six points behind with three games remaining. The revival isn't complete just yet.

Could Iceland upset the injury-ravaged world champions?

Another potential upset could come in Reykjavik, where a slightly depleted France travel to face a potentially very ticklish tie indeed. Without the injured Hugo Lloris, Kylian Mbappe and Paul Pogba, plus a host of other players carrying assorted ailments, France aren't exactly going into this one in roaring good health.

Didier Deschamps' side beat Iceland 4-0 in March, but since then have been far from convincing, and that shock defeat to Turkey in June means they go into this one in third place, three points ahead of Friday's opponents, who will sniff a genuine chance to spring a surprise. If they do, that will introduce a large and hungry cat to a crowd of skittish pigeons, France will have to seek revenge against the Turks when they come to Paris on Monday, and it will make the last few games in Group H absolutely fascinating.

Will England have to deal with ugly racism again?

Depressing as it is to have to contemplate this prospect in 2019, there are fears that England's black players could once again be subject to racist abuse when they travel to Sofia on Monday to face Bulgaria. It's been a problem there before, and is anticipated to the extent that the players have already discussed what they would do if the situation arose.

Clearly, it's an abysmal indictment of society that someone like Tammy Abraham should even be put in this position, but the Chelsea forward confirmed this week that in the event of racist abuse the England side would consider ignoring UEFA's prescribed "three steps" policy -- an appeal over the PA, then temporary suspension of the game, then abandonment -- and just walk off the field.

Whatever happens, England will act as a collective. "It's a team thing," said Abraham. "Don't isolate one person...It's not just affecting one person, it's affecting the team. If we decide that we don't want to play this game because of what's going on, we'll come off as a team."

MAN TO WATCH

Aaron Ramsey: Who knows whether Wales would be in a stronger position to qualify for the finals if Ramsey had been fit. The Juventus midfielder has not been available for a single minute of their four games so far, so you can understand just how anxiously Welsh fans everywhere were waiting for reports on his fitness for their games against Slovakia and Croatia this weekend.

This time an abductor muscle problem has kept him out of the former, but he is training hard to be fit for the latter in Cardiff on Sunday. Four points from those two games would put Wales right back in the mix with two games to go after that.

Could Ramsey be the difference?

THE GAME YOU'RE NOT PLANNING TO WATCH ... BUT SHOULD

Denmark vs. Switzerland: On the face of it, this might look like a moderately interesting game between two moderately good teams, but actually this could be a bit of a thriller. Certainly if it's anything like the last time they faced each other in March: That time the Swiss were 3-0 ahead in the 84th minute, only for the Danes to roar back and score three times in nine minutes to clinch a 3-3 draw deep into injury-time, Henrik Dalsgaard swooping at the last.

The two sides have scored 25 goals between them in qualifying so far, so if you're stuck for entertainment on Saturday, this is the one for you.

THE TEAM THAT NEEDS A BIT OF LUCK

Kosovo: It's pretty remarkable that Kosovo, who weren't even UEFA members when the last qualification period started, are in a very decent position to make it through this time.

Here they are, currently in third place in Group A, but this is one of those tricky rounds of games where they're only playing once, and are simultaneously looking for a favour from England: Should Gareth Southgate's side beat the Czech Republic on Friday night, and they beat Montenegro at home a few days later, then they will go into the final two games in pole position to go through automatically. Remarkable.

ONE THING THAT WILL DEFINITELY HAPPEN

Nobody will have much fun watching Ireland: In Mick McCarthy's second spell in charge, the Republic of Ireland are a slightly curious proposition. They sit top of Group D, two points ahead of Denmark and three clear of Switzerland, who have a game in hand. This weekend they have two away games, against Georgia and the Swiss, and we simply cannot recommend watching either of them.

It's perhaps not McCarthy's fault, as his remit is very short-term -- to get them to the finals before Stephen Kenny takes over next summer -- and he has a relatively shallow pool of talent with which to carry out that task. But they've played five games and scored six goals, and they are nobody's idea of a team that produces free-flowing football. Maybe just wait and check the scores afterwards for these ones.

SELECTED PREDICTIONS

Group A: Czech Republic 0-3 England; Bulgaria 1-4 England
Group B: Ukraine 1-2 Portugal
Group C: Netherlands 3-1 Northern Ireland; Estonia 1-3 Germany
Group D: Denmark 3-2 Switzerland; Switzerland 2-1 Ireland
Group E: Slovakia 1-1 Wales; Wales 2-1 Croatia
Group F: Sweden 1-3 Spain
Group G: Latvia 0-3 Poland; Slovenia 2-1 Austria
Group H: Iceland 2-2 France; France 3-0 Turkey
Group I: Belgium 7-0 San Marino; Russia 4-0 Scotland
Group J: Italy 3-0 Greece

Atlanta Braves catcher Brian McCann said Wednesday that he is retiring after 15 major league seasons.

McCann, 35, revealed his plans after Atlanta's 13-1 loss to St. Louis in the decisive Game 5 of the National League Division Series.

"This is it for me," he told reporters in the locker room, saying he made the decision about a month and a half ago. "I'm going to go home and be a dad and play with those kids."

The Georgia native began his career with nine seasons with the Braves and was named an All-Star seven times before moving to the New York Yankees in 2014. He won the World Series in 2017 after a trade to the Houston Astros.

Alex Bregman, who played with McCann in Houston, quickly paid tribute to his former teammate via Twitter.

Brian McCann is one of the best catchers to ever play the game but also the best dude I met in Professional Baseball. Love you bro.

— Alex Bregman (@ABREG_1) October 10, 2019

McCann re-signed with Atlanta as a free agent last November to play for manager Brian Snitker, who was his manager at Double-A Mississippi when the Braves first called him up directly to the majors in 2005.

"Yeah, he knew," McCann said of Snitker. "I've known him for a long, long time. He was my Double-A manager. Being able to do this with him as my manager is something I'll always remember."

A six-time Silver Slugger, McCann passed 1,000 career RBIs in his final season. He finished with a career .262 average, 282 home runs and 1,018 RBIs. This season, he hit .249 with 12 homers and 45 RBIs in 85 games.

"This is everything that I wanted to do," McCann said. "I wanted to come back and get a chance at the postseason."

That top of the fifth felt like a very big turn of events. The Nats got the first two batters on, Walker Buehler was reeling, but Dave Martinez chose not to pinch-hit for Stephen Strasburg. What followed was three consecutive outs, and the Dodgers maintaining a three-run lead.

CROSSVILLE, Tenn. – Saturday night at 411 Motor Speedway was a landmark night for 27-year-old Jesse Lowe, as the Tennessee racer tasted victory for the 100th time in his career.

The milestone accomplishment came aboard his Xtreme Pressure Washing No. 5j Gondolas Pizza and Steakhouse/ CVR Race Car Crate Late Model.

The victory was also the 18th of Lowe’s 2019 campaign.

“When the year started, 18 wins seemed like a tall order, but I knew that if I could reach that number, that I’d also achieve my 100th win. On Saturday night I was thankfully able to achieve that goal,” Lowe shared. “To do it with my dad and my family there with me meant the world to me. It was also really cool to get the win in front of such a packed house that was there to see the World of Outlaws.

“So many great folks have helped me along the way to help me get to this point, and this win is for each-and-every one of them.”

Lowe made the short trip to 411 Motor Speedway on Saturday evening, where he was piloting his Gondola Pizza and Steakhouse No. 5j crate late model entry.

Qualifying second-fastest in time trials behind Trevor Sise, Jesse earned the second starting position for the A-main. Tracking down Sise by the seventh lap, Lowe took control of the lead two laps later and dominated the remaining distance of the 25-lap feature.

Saturday night’s win earned Lowe a $1,500 payday.

Zach Sise, Jensen Ford, Chip Brindle, and Bradley Lewelling completed the top five finishers.

RICHMOND, Va. — Following more than two years of development from concept to reality, NASCAR’s Next Gen car hit the track for the first time this week during a two-day test at Richmond Raceway.

The much-anticipated car, which is slated to debut at the 2021 Daytona 500, will honor stock car racing’s roots, with bodies that resemble their street versions while incorporating new vehicle technology and innovation.

“This is an important milestone for the Next Gen car and the future of stock car racing,” said John Probst, NASCAR Senior Vice President of Innovation and Racing Development. “There are so many new systems on the car from the front to the back that our main goal with this test was to log laps and put miles on them.

“The test has met – and even exceeded – our expectations, and we are well on our way to developing the final iteration of the car.”

Austin Dillon was behind the wheel of the car, which was assembled by Richard Childress Racing in collaboration with NASCAR.

“I really enjoyed driving the car,” Dillon said. “I like the way that it looks, you can see the finished product down the road. The OEMs can make the body look really good, like a street car that you see on the road today. When it comes together and they all get their cars on the track, we’re going to have something to work with that also looks really good.”

The car is one of two prototypes currently built. The other was assembled by NASCAR and was tested in the wind tunnel for the first time on Oct. 1. That car is scheduled to make its second trip to the wind tunnel later this week.

Another on-track test is anticipated before the year concludes.

“We have a very comprehensive test plan,” Probst said. “We will be doing extensive wind tunnel testing to ensure liftoff speeds are appropriate before moving to larger tracks. As we move into 2020, we will begin testing on intermediate tracks, superspeedways and road courses.”

While many components on the current versions of the car will remain, some major elements – including each OEMs body design – are still in development.

ENSENADA, Mexico — Early entries for November’s 52nd SCORE Baja 1000, the ‘Granddaddy of All Desert Races’, have come from 18 states and seven countries.

The final round of the four-race SCORE World Desert Championship will start and finish in the heart of Baja California, Mexico, with race-week festivities and the race held Nov. 19-24.

The SCORE Baja 1000 is the most iconic, oldest, prestigious, toughest and longest continuously-held desert race in the world.

The race will be televised on a delayed basis as a one-hour special on ABC TV’s World of X Games programming.

Over 250 vehicles are expected at the start line with racers from over 30 U.S. states and as many as 20 countries anticipated.

Included in the first 43 official entries of the more than 250 anticipated for this year’s renewal of the world’s most iconic desert race are racers from 18 U.S. States and seven countries.

U.S. States represented in the field of competitors to date are from Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Idaho, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, Utah, Virginia and Washington.

Besides the United States and host Mexico, countries represented to date in the total entry field are from Canada, Italy, Japan, Norway and Spain.

Long-time SCORE sponsor BFGoodrich Tires has posted a $40,000 contingency bonus for the overall four-wheel winner to help commemorate the renewal of the legendary event.

This year’s SCORE Baja 1000 will be a loop race of 799.1 miles in the northern state of Mexico’s majestic Baja California peninsula.

It will start for the 45th time and finish for the 26th time in Ensenada and the race is annually the finale of the four-race SCORE World Desert Championship, which has been held exclusively for the past four years in Baja California.

The trio of Justin Morgan, Mark Samuels and Justin Jones is the defending champion team of the SCORE Baja 1000.