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Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy said Wednesday that right wing Chris Wagner has returned to Boston for tests on his injured right arm and will not be available for Game 4 of the Eastern Conference finals against the Carolina Hurricanes on Thursday in Raleigh, North Carolina.
Wagner hurt his arm blocking a Justin Faulk slap shot in the third period of Tuesday's 2-1 victory that gave the Bruins a 3-0 lead in the series. The fourth-liner, who scored the first goal of Game 3, had his arm in a sling after the game.
"You never want to see injuries like that, but that's testament to him and what he's willing to give for this team and block a shot like that," teammate Charlie Coyle said. "That gets us fired up. It's the little things. They add up. That's a big loss for us."
Noel Acciari is expected to take Wagner's spot on the fourth line alongside Sean Kuraly and Joakim Nordstrom. Acciari had been sidelined with an upper-body injury but was declared fit to play earlier in the week.
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What to expect: A look at how Woods has followed up Masters wins
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Golf
Wednesday, 15 May 2019 10:05
FARMINGDALE, N.Y. – Tiger Woods won the Masters. Now what?
It’s a question that Woods has answered four previous times, back when the golf calendar had the U.S. Open following the springtime pilgrimage to Augusta National. Now it’s the PGA Championship that is second in line, and it’s held on a course where Woods has won before (more on that below).
On the eve of the opening round, here’s a look back at how Woods has followed each of his previous green jacket performances in his very next major start:
1997 U.S. Open: T-19. After crushing the field en route to his first Masters title, Woods’ encore was quickly undone by an opening-round 74 at Congressional. He followed with a 67 that left him four shots off the lead heading into the weekend, but rounds of 73-72 put him at 6 over for the week and 10 shots behind Ernie Els, who edged Colin Montgomerie for his second U.S. Open title.
2001 U.S. Open: T-12. As incomprehensible as it is to type, Woods went to Southern Hills with a chance to win his fifth major in a row after wrapping up the Tiger Slam two months prior. But like in 1997, he was playing catch-up after opening with a 74 that featured just one birdie. Weekend rounds of 69-69 made the result more respectable, but he still finished seven shots outside of a playoff that saw Retief Goosen beat Mark Brooks.
2002 U.S. Open: Win. That was the first time a major was held at Bethpage State Park, as Woods snagged his second major of the year and seventh in the last 11 played. Woods grabbed the opening-round lead with a 67, led by three heading into the weekend and four entering the final round. Despite closing with a 2-over 72, he managed to finish the week as the only player under par and three shots ahead of Phil Mickelson. His bid for the single-season Grand Slam would be undone by epic weather conditions at Muirfield the following month.
2005 U.S. Open: Second. Weeks after edging Chris DiMarco in a memorable playoff at Augusta National, Woods wasn’t able to keep pace with a relative unknown in Michael Campbell. Woods was three shots off the pace heading into the weekend and all seemed lost once Goosen distanced himself from the field in Round 3, but when the South African collapsed in the final round, it became a wide-open race. Despite bogeys on his first two holes, Woods got within two shots of the lead with a birdie on No. 15. But bogeys on the next two holes coincided with a timely Campbell birdie as the Kiwi captured his lone major title by two shots.
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Daly: Playing with cart a 'distraction,' still 'not even easy' but needs it to play
Published in
Golf
Wednesday, 15 May 2019 10:13
FARMINGDALE, N.Y. – Set against a backdrop of rolling hills, it was the kind of site that prompts a double take as John Daly wheeled his way through the crowds on Wednesday at Bethpage Black.
Daly became the first player since Casey Martin at the 2012 U.S. Open to be allowed to use a golf cart at a major championship under the Americans with Disabilities Act, and despite some push back from players, most notably Tiger Woods, using a golf cart was the 1991 PGA champion’s only option.
“I wouldn’t have been able to play [without a golf cart],” Daly said. “To tell you the truth it’s not even easy playing with a cart because for me the cart is more of a distraction but I need it otherwise I can’t play.”
Maneuvering a golf cart across Bethpage Black’s 7,459 yards of rolling terrain and between the throng of fans has proven difficult for Daly. It’s been made even more challenging by a list of guidelines that the PGA of America demanded for cart use during the championship.
“Where the player goes all depends on the golf course and the conditions. I will meet with John and just talk through where he can go and can't go,” said Kerry Haigh, the PGA’s chief championships officer. “Obviously there's some places on this golf course where you can't get a golf cart to. We try and use common sense, what's reasonable, what's fair for the protection of both the player and as well as the playing of a major championship.”
Osteoarthritis in Daly’s right knee prevents him from walking more than six holes at a time and he said there is no short-term option for relief.
“It won’t get better until I get it replaced and they said I’m too young [for replacement surgery],” Daly said. “If it was broken it would have been much better, but I have Osteoarthritis. It just hurts, especially when I go downhill. I rode in a cart and it’s swelling up like a watermelon.”
Despite losing about 30 pounds and a procedure six weeks ago to remove part of his meniscus, the pain remains and has been compounded by a recent diagnosis of diabetes and issues with his liver.
“When all the players were talking about it they didn’t know about the diabetes and the liver problems,” he said.
On Tuesday Woods was asked about Daly’s use of a golf cart. “I walked with a broken leg, so . . .,” said Woods, who famously won the 2008 U.S. Open on a broken leg and a torn ACL.
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FARMINGDALE, N.Y. – Heading into the opening round of the PGA Championship, Jason Day is keeping an eye on the thermometer.
Day won his lone major title at this event back in 2015 under sunny summer skies at Whistling Straits. Conditions will be a little different this week at Bethpage State Park, where plenty of ski caps were spotted during early-week practice and where temperatures aren’t expected to crack 65 degrees the rest of the week.
While players have their club distances charted based on a variety of metrics, Day keeps track of his yardages based on temperature. A full 8-iron, for instance, will travel 176 yards at 80 degrees. But it’ll only go 169 yards at 50 degrees, the approximate temperatures the Aussie will face for his second-round tee time Friday morning.
“You definitely have to manage the cold. You have to know how far things are going, and on top of it how far you hit it with layers on as well,” Day said. “With layers on you’re probably taking another five yards off. It’s literally probably a 10 to 15 yard difference, and on top of that you have to trust it.”
While Day plans to embrace the impact the cold temps will have on his yardage book, he doesn’t expect them to affect his oft-ailing back. Day abruptly withdrew from the Arnold Palmer Invitational in March because of a back injury, but since then he posted top-10 finishes at both The Players and the Masters.
“Back’s been great. Haven’t had to do anything really, to be honest,” he said. “It’s funny. When you have a back issue and you do the right exercise, typically you can do the right exercise and everything will fall back into place properly. So it’s just a matter of finding out what that exercise is. And obviously rest, rest is huge.”
Day remains one of the longest hitters on Tour, and he’s currently fifth this season in strokes gained off-the-tee. It’s an advantage he hopes to press on a soggy Black Course that has been made even longer by early-week rain.
“You have to carry it further just strictly because of how thick the rough is,” Day said. “If you’re a long-ball hitter here and you’ve got it going somewhat straight, you’re going to play well as long as you can chip and putt well. Someone that is just medium distance and is hitting it just a little bit off the fairway, you’re not going to.”
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'Bored' Koepka's slow-play fix: Make rounds 14-15 holes
Published in
Golf
Wednesday, 15 May 2019 11:50
With three major championships under his belt, defending PGA Champion Brooks Koepka has become one of the game's more vocal players on Tour.
Now with the game to back up his opinions, Koepka has showcased his true personality to the world of golf. His latest topic deals with the pace-of-play dilemma the Tour has been faced with recently.
Appearing on an episode of Barstool Sports' Pardon My Take podcast, Koepka talks about how he would fix the slow-play issue in professional golf.
"Nobody wants to spend 5 1/2 hours out there," said Koepka. "I would just make it 15 holes, 14 holes. Because then you get to go to the 19th hole a little bit quicker."
Koepka then took it a step further, saying he gets bored in the middle of rounds, even during tournament play.
"It gets boring from hole five through 12, you’re just like 'where am I right now?'" continued Koepka. "I literally can’t tell you what happened during those holes. You kind of black out. Everything is so repetitive.”
This is nothing new for Koepka, the world's No. 3 ranked player, who has frequently discussed this issue a number of times already in 2019. His most quotable moment came back in February, when he said 'no one has the balls' to penalize slow play.
Prior to that, Koepka discussed how 'embarrassing' slow play has become shortly after a European Tour-produced video went viral of Bryon DeChambeau calculating air density into his methodical pre-shot calculations.
"I just don't understand how it takes a minute and 20 seconds, a minute and 15 seconds to hit a golf ball. It's not that hard," Koepka said in January. "It's always between two clubs. There's a miss short, there's a miss long. It really drives me nuts, especially when it's a long hitter because you know you've got two other guys, or at least one guy that's hitting before you, so you can do all your calculations. You should have your numbers."
With the year's second major on the line this week at Bethpage Black, don't be surprised to see the same slow play from the guys who are bunched atop the leaderboard Sunday afternoon. Not even shortening it to 14 or 15 holes is going to fix that issue.
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Thomas (right wrist) cleared to begin chipping, putting after MRI
Published in
Golf
Wednesday, 15 May 2019 12:53
After withdrawing from this year's PGA Championship, including Tuesday night's Champions Dinner, with a nagging right-wrist injury, Justin Thomas remained in the New York metropolitan area for an MRI, according to Golf Channel's Tim Rosaforte.
The 2017 PGA champion also received consultation with a hand specialist at the Hospital for Special Surgery and went through two-a-day rehab sessions.
Some good news did come for Thomas, who was given clearance to begin chipping and putting while still rehabbing his injured wrist.
Thomas hasn't played since finishing T-12 at the Masters last month, pulling out of the Wells Fargo Championship two weeks ago, citing the same wrist injury.
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Manchester United are relying on a favour from rivals Manchester City to avoid a summer of chaos.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's side finished sixth in the Premier League and face a Europa League qualifier on July 25 unless City beat Watford in the FA Cup final on Saturday.
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The early start to the season would play havoc with a preseason schedule that is already in place, including friendlies in Australia, Singapore, China and Cardiff.
United are set to play Tottenham in Shanghai on July 25 -- the same day as the potential Europa League second qualifying round first leg.
If City can complete the final leg of their domestic treble, United will enter the Europa League in the group phase. If not, they will have to play on six consecutive Thursdays -- in the second qualifying round, third qualifying round and play-off round -- before being entered into the draw for the group stage on Aug. 30. The first group games will be played on Sep. 19.
Sources have told ESPN FC that United have also agreed a deal with Kristiansund -- Solskjaer's hometown team -- to play an additional friendly in Oslo on July 30. However, the club have been forced to delay the announcement until after their Europa League schedule is more clear.
The squad are due to report back for Carrington for the start of preseason training on July 1 before flying to Australia on July 7. They are due to play Perth Glory in Perth on July 13 before a game against Leeds United, also in Perth, on July 17.
From there, United fly to Singapore to play Inter Milan on July 20 before facing Tottenham in Shanghai on July 25 and AC Milan in Cardiff on Aug. 3.
The new Premier League campaign begins on Aug. 10.
Sources have told ESPN FC that contingency plans are in place if the summer fixture list is disrupted by Europa League qualifiers.
Options include fulfilling friendlies with a reserve team or moving the dates and venues of games.
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Ruben Loftus-Cheek suffered a serious injury to overshadow Chelsea's 3-0 win over New England Revolution at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts in a friendly branded the "Final Whistle on Hate."
In front of the watching Roman Abramovich, Loftus-Cheek had to be helped from the field by Chelsea medical staff in the 68th minute after appearing to have his heel trodden on by a Revolution player, leaving him unable to put any weight on his left leg.
With only 13 days until Chelsea face Arsenal in the Europa League final, Loftus-Cheek's injury leaves his participation in significant doubt and adds to the concerns of head coach Maurizio Sarri, who is already sweating on the fitness of N'Golo Kante (hamstring) ahead of the match.
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Sarri admitted last weekend that Chelsea's trip to the United States was problematic for his Europa League final preparations, and the match against the Revolution was also played on a sub-standard pitch at Gillette Stadium.
Abramovich, who has not been seen at Stamford Bridge since having an application to renew his visa rejected by the UK government last year, witnessed goals from Ross Barkley and Olivier Giroud in a comprehensive Blues victory that never looked in doubt.
The match raised more than $4 million for projects aimed at tackling anti-Semitism around the world, with Abramovich and Revolution owner Robert Kraft each personally donating $1 million to the cause.
Sarri picked a strong starting XI that included the likes of Eden Hazard, Jorginho and David Luiz, with the Brazilian wearing armband while regular captain Cesar Azpilicueta was given a rest for the first half.
The gulf in class between Chelsea and the Revolution -- who sit bottom of the MLS Eastern Conference and sacked manager Brad Friedel last week -- was immediately clear, and it took less than three minutes for Barkley to pounce on a poor attempted clearance in the penalty area and whip a shot inside the post.
Former U.S. national team coach Bruce Arena -- newly appointed as the Revolution's new manager and sporting director after Friedel's firing -- watched from one of the stadium's suites.
Pedro Rodriguez was Chelsea's most threatening player on the right flank, with Eden Hazard reluctant to shoot from the left despite frequently exciting the crowd of 27,329 at Gillette Stadium with his skill.
Chelsea's lead doubled in the 29th minute after good work from Hazard and Pedro in transition, culminating in an overlapping Davide Zappacosta crossing for Giroud to head in from close range.
Gonzalo Higuain replaced Giroud as one of five substitutions at half-time and almost found a Chelsea third in the 54th minute, when his fierce shot was superbly tipped onto the crossbar by Brad Knighton after a Zachary Herivaux mistake presented the ball to the Argentine in the box.
A third goal did eventually arrive eight minutes later, as Higuain hammered Willian's low corner goalwards and the ball took a kind deflection off the unwitting Barkley before nestling in the far corner.
The final minutes were marred by concern over Loftus-Cheek's injury, but Chelsea academy prospects Conor Gallagher, Reece James and Trevoh Chalobah were brought on by Sarri as his team coasted to the final whistle.
Chelsea fly back to London on Thursday and will enjoy two days off before beginning preparations at Cobham for the Europa League final, when Sarri will be hoping for good news about Kante and Loftus-Cheek.
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Josef Martinez scored his fifth goal of the season and his second from the penalty spot, and Atlanta United set an MLS record with a 1-0 victory over the Vancouver Whitecaps on Wednesday night, their fifth win in a row via shutout.
Three days after scoring his first goal of the season, Pity Martinez earned the penalty at BC Place as Atlanta (6-3-2, 20 points) built upon the league's longest active win streak. The Philadelphia Union have won three in a row.
The victory pushes United up to third in the Eastern Conference standings, level on points with the Montreal Impact and ahead of them on goal difference. And it puts Atlanta alone in MLS history in terms of consecutive shutout victories. Previously, eight teams had won four in a row without conceding, but never five.
Maxime Crepeau made five saves for Vancouver (3-6-3, 12 points), which was outshot 17-7 overall and 6-2 in terms of efforts on target. Vancouver saw its win streak snapped at two games. The Whitecaps were second best for most of the evening despite having four days off following their previous game -- also at home -- against Atlanta's two.
Pity Martinez earned the penalty in the 27th minute when he won a loose ball on the right side of the penalty area, turned his body toward the goal line and absorbed Lass' challenge from behind.
After the Whitecaps protested to referee Baldomero Toledo, Josef Martinez stepped up to take it two minutes later, approaching it quickly and hammering his finish above Crepeau's dive and inside the right post.
Atlanta would've doubled its lead without Crepeau's exceptional string of three saves in the 59th minute.
First, the 25-year-old smothered Hector Villalba's breakaway effort. Josef Martinez kept the play alive and found Eric Remedi, who saw his shot denied again by Crepeau, and the 'keeper somehow scrambled to his feet just in time to thwart Pity Martinez's rebound header as well.
For an encore, Crepeau denied Josef Martinez's 67th-minute header with a flailing left-legged stop. And then he intervened with his feet well outside his box to keep Julian Gressel from adding on an insurance tally in the 90th minute.
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Transfer window grades: Tracking every big signing from Europe's top clubs
Published in
Soccer
Thursday, 16 May 2019 01:09
Welcome to summer transfer window -- open on May 16 for the Premier League and a bit later in Europe. We are grading the most notable signings below from the top clubs across Europe, so come back throughout the month for updates as deals are completed.
The most recent grades and write-ups are at the top, and the first grade goes back to July 1 when the moves from the offseason are officially complete. Each day is in order of highest price.
If you don't see a grade for a deal that has been completed, check back later.
JULY 1
LUCAS HERNANDEZ, €80m
Atletico Madrid grade: C+
Bayern Munich grade: A
It's been quite a 12 months for Lucas -- first a World Cup winners' medal with France and now he's become one of the most expensive defenders of all time. The 23-year-old still has plenty of time to grow and his ability to play either left-back or centre-back means Bayern have plenty of options.
In landing Lucas alongside international teammate Benjamin Pavard (see below), the German side have secured their defence for the next decade. A great move, albeit an expensive one.
Atletico will gladly take the cash and use it to reinforce their side, but with Diego Godin already departing, one wonders if they will leave themselves open to defensive issues. He only signed a contract extension in June, so the club will be regretting the choice to keep his buyout clause so relatively low.
FRENKIE DE JONG, €75m
Ajax grade: B+
Barcelona grade: A
If Dortmund have found plenty of success buying cheap and selling big, Ajax are the blueprint to follow. The academy system brings through players at a young age, gives them first-team football and turns them into superstars. Frenkie de Jong has only made just over 50 appearances for Ajax but the 21-year-old holding midfielder cost Barcelona €75m -- money that Ajax will use to put back into the club and find the next player for the production line.
Announcing the deal in January was smart as the speculation was starting to impact player and club, so Ajax deserve props for that. But one wonders if they could have bagged even more money if they had waited for the summer when Man City, PSG and Real Madrid might have come in for him. Still, €75m is a fine amount and they got to keep him for the rest of the season to keep their Eredivisie title chase intact.
For Barcelona, De Jong is the natural heir to Sergio Busquets. He will learn a lot in the next couple of years playing with Busquets and teammates, while his style is perfect for how Barca play.
CHRISTIAN PULISIC, €64m
Dortmund grade: B
Chelsea grade: A+
When Chelsea announced they had signed U.S. international Christian Pulisic on Jan. 2 and would be loaning him back to Dortmund for the rest of the 2018-19 season, they stole a march on their rivals. The much-coveted 20-year-old had been tracked by every top club in the world, but Chelsea moved quickly to tie him down and it's a signing that safeguards the club's future as much as it improves their current squad.
Pulisic's combination of guile, creativity and skill make him one of the standout prospects in the world so for the Blues to land him for only €64m is a real coup.
Yes, Dortmund could have held out for more, they could have started a bidding war, but with only 18 months remaining on his contract, the German club knew they would be playing with fire. It's another star player sold, but as long as they keep unearthing gems like Jadon Sancho then they'll be fine.
RODRYGO, €54m
Santos grade: A+
Real Madrid grade: B
Having already spent €45m on young Brazilian attacker Vinicius Jr. back in 2017, Real Madrid agreed another monster deal in the summer of 2018 for a highly-rated 18-year-old who had been linked with Barcelona.
Rodrygo certainly has the talent to succeed and, if you believe his teammate Vinicius, can be "a great, like Neymar or [Kylian] Mbappe." Real would probably settle for the forward having the same impact as Vinicius did though, after the winger made a real impression at the Bernabeu in the second half of 2018-19 season with his skill and speed.
At €54m, Real have gambled on youth but it's a gamble that could pay off. There was no chance a talent like Rodrygo was going to stay in Brazil and Santos, as they have done many times before, got the best deal they possibly could. Let's just hope there's no succession of court cases in a few years' time about who was owed what.
EDER MILITAO, €50m
FC Porto grade: A+
Real Madrid grade: C
At first glance, Real Madrid spending €50m on a 21-year-old centre-back might be deemed good business. A good defender is hard to find, after all. But then you consider that Porto signed Eder Militao for €7m just last summer and that Sergio Ramos and Raphael Varane are two of the best centre-backs in world football, with Dani Carvajal and Alvaro Odriozola occupying the right-back slot, so he won't be playing regularly any time soon.
In signing a six-year deal, there's no doubt that Eder has plenty of room to grow. But Real have wasted a young talent before by keeping him on the bench, and it feels like this one is doomed to fail.
From Porto's perspective, a €43m profit inside eight months is incredible business. After a lucrative run in this season's Champions League, they can reinvest and move on quickly.
BENJAMIN PAVARD, €35m
Stuttgart grade: B
Bayern grade: B+
Bayern have been a bit of a mess this season, but Benjamin Pavard's performances for France in winning the World Cup this summer suggest that he can help them fix their issues. The 22-year-old can play at right-back or centre-back, so that versatility will be key for Bayern, while his release clause of €35m won't break the bank either.
If we're being completely honest, he's not the world-class addition that Bayern would shout from the rooftops but he's a solid addition with room to grow and he should play a big role in the next few years.
Clearly outgrowing Stuttgart, there was nothing much they could do to stop him leaving either, so it's a decent deal for them too.
RAUL JIMINEZ, £30m
Benfica: C
Wolves grade: A
You have to hand it to Raul Jiminez, struggling since he left Liga MX in 2014, the Mexico international striker made the best of his loan move to Wolves and earned himself a permanent deal, which the club were only too happy to break their transfer record to make happen.
A year of failure at Atletico Madrid and three seasons at Benfica in which he failed to get into double figures in the goals department has not daunted him. At 27, the chance to play at the top wasn't going to come around again and his form this season at Wolves has been nothing short of sensational. Only promoted last season, Wolves are looking like a class act.
Benfica initially landed him from Atletico for just under €10m, bought out his rights for another €12m and can count a healthy profit from their endeavours. They will only wonder how they weren't able to get the best out of him as Wolves clearly have.
AARON RAMSEY, Free
Arsenal: F
Juventus grade: A
It's actually quite hard to see how Arsenal could have made a worse job of this deal. First up they offer Aaron Ramsey a new deal, then they pull it out from underneath him and say he can leave on a free. So he does.
Evidently it's all down to the position he would have played under Unai Emery, but the fact of the matter is that the Gunners are letting one of Europe's top midfielders, coming into the peak of his powers at 28 years old, depart for nothing. And with only a reported £40m to spend on reinforcements for the whole squad, there's no guarantee they will be able to replace him adequately.
Juventus did what they always seem to do and signed a quality player for nothing, so it's an A for them. It's only not an A+ because they had to make him a very lucrative wage offer to get him to sign. Gab Marcotti explains why that was a reckless move.
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