Michael Whitaker Articles - Page 11

This is not the news that the Toronto Maple Leafs and their fans wanted to ring the new year in with. Team captain Auston Matthews, who has been hampered by an injury all season long for which he even traveled to Germany to seek treatment, sounded unsure whether he’d be able to put the injury […]

For the second time in the famed venue’s history, Wrigley Field on the north side of Chicago hosted the NHL’s Winter Classic. In 2009, it was the former division rival Detroit Red Wings who took on the Chicago Blackhawks; the Red Wings eventually won 6-4 in what was just the second Winter Classic in NHL […]

There’s almost nothing going right for the New York Rangers right now, as they’re mired in an inexplicable streak that’s seen them lose 15 of their last 19 games. With their most recent loss to the Florida Panthers, who defeated them earlier this spring in the Eastern Conference Final, the Rangers have now fallen three […]

The Chicago Blackhawks are once again preparing to play in the NHL’s annual Winter Classic, and for the second time, the event will be played at historic Wrigley Field on the north side of Chicago. The iconic venue has served as the home of Major League Baseball’s Chicago Cubs for over 100 years now and […]

The Philadelphia Flyers are understandably excited about the future of rookie Matvei Michkov, one of the contenders to win the Calder Trophy as the NHL’s best rookie of the year for the 2024-25 NHL season. But thanks to his action in Philadelphia’s game on Sunday against the Los Angeles Kings, Michkov is now lighter in […]

Former Chicago Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews has not played since April of 2023, and his career seemed all but officially over. He also missed a considerable portion of the 2022-23 NHL season, while sitting out the entire 2021-22 season owing to chronic immune response syndrome and long COVID. However, it appears that he’s still open […]

Thanks to a myriad of factors which include devastating injuries to key players, the Dallas Cowboys will not be in the postseason; their 2024 season will conclude next Sunday when they host the Washington Commanders at AT&T Stadium. With Sunday afternoon’s 41-7 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field, the Cowboys fell to […]

The Dallas Cowboys were thoroughly defeated by the rival Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Stadium on Sunday afternoon, falling to 7-9 with their 41-7 defeat. It was the latest blow for Dallas, who has already been mathematically eliminated from postseason contention. Quarterback Dak Prescott, who underwent season-ending hamstring surgery last month, admitted following the game […]

The Cincinnati Bengals remained mathematically alive in the postseason race thanks to Saturday’s dramatic 30-24 victory over the Denver Broncos at Paycor Stadium. Quarterback Joe Burrow threw his third and most important touchdown pass of the evening to Tee Higgins in overtime, sealing the victory and keeping the Bengals’ hope of a return to the […]

The Philadelphia Flyers defeated the Anaheim Ducks on Saturday afternoon at Honda Center with a 3-1 final score. The game also featured the first matchup by former Flyers first-round draft pick Cutter Gauthier, who requested a trade from the organization before playing a single game at the NHL level. Speaking of former first-round draft picks, […]

The Cincinnati Bengals kept their postseason hopes alive on Saturday night, defeating the Denver Broncos by a 30-24 final in overtime. With 1:07 left in the extra session, quarterback Joe Burrow threw his third touchdown pass of the night, connecting with Tee Higgins for the game-deciding score. But there was one major area of concern […]

The Tampa Bay Lightning are in action against the visiting New York Rangers at Amalie Arena in Tampa Bay, and it’s been a milestone affair for the most recognizable member of the Lightning blue line. Defenseman Victor Hedman has now played in the most games in a Tampa Bay uniform in franchise history, passing the […]

The Philadelphia Flyers traveled to California for the first time this season, taking on the Anaheim Ducks in a matinee matchup at Honda Center. The Flyers, who had lost four of five games, got 32 saves from Samuel Ersson and a goal by Noah Cates for the fifth consecutive game. But one key play during […]

A pair of teams going in opposite directions made a trade on Saturday involving minor league players. The Nashville Predators, led by GM Barry Trotz and who have experienced some of the most stunning results so far in the 2024-25 season, have acquired Ondrej Pavel as well as a third-round pick in the 2027 NHL […]

As the Washington Commanders continue their march toward the postseason, they’re in preparations for Sunday’s game against the Atlanta Falcons. With a 10-5 record, Washington has enjoyed its first winning campaign since 2016 and can officially punch their ticket to the playoffs should they defeat the Falcons. And they’re getting a valuable piece of their […]

The Philadelphia Flyers are set to take on the Anaheim Ducks on Saturday afternoon, and it will feature former Flyers draft pick Cutter Gauthier taking on his former club. He was the fifth-overall selection by the Flyers in 2022 but requested to be traded last season. Gauthier was moved to the Ducks in exchange for […]

While the New York Rangers are in complete dire straits right now, they’re getting some good news on the injury front. Defenseman K’Andre Miller, who was placed on Injured Reserve earlier this month, has been activated and is expected to be available for Saturday night’s Rangers game against the rival Tampa Bay Lightning at Amalie […]

The Washington Capitals have been one of the most impressive stories so far in the 2024-25 NHL season, racing out to second place in the Metropolitan Division thanks to an even mix of veteran and youth talent. And while the Capitals are getting plenty of contributions from their younger players, future Hall of Fame captain […]

The Minnesota Wild resume their schedule following the Christmas break with a divisional matchup against the rival Dallas Stars, but there’s some discouraging news on the health front. Superstar forward Kirill Kaprizov will be unavailable for the Wild against the Stars thanks to a lower-body injury; he also didn’t travel with the team to Dallas. […]

The Colorado Avalanche have acted swiftly not long after acquiring goaltending help from the San Jose Sharks earlier this month. They sent struggling starter Alexandar Georgiev to the Sharks in exchange for Mackenzie Blackwood, and they’ve announced today after days of speculation that he’s under contract for the foreseeable future. The Avalanche have re-signed Blackwood […]

The Vancouver Canucks entered the 2024-25 NHL season as the defending Pacific Division champions, fresh off the franchise’s first 50-win campaign since 2011-12. Despite an opening-round victory over the Nashville Predators, Vancouver’s run was ended by the eventual Western Conference champion Edmonton Oilers. Injuries significantly impacted their performance, with star goaltender Thatcher Demko sidelined in […]

The Chicago Blackhawks have nearly reached the midpoint of the 2024-25 NHL season, and the results have fallen short of management’s expectations. This is particularly disappointing given their efforts to surround former No. 1 overall pick Connor Bedard with significantly more talent than he had during his rookie campaign last year. The plan was to […]

The Pittsburgh Steelers fell to 10-6 in 2024 with yesterday’s loss to the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs, a 29-10 loss at Acrisure Stadium. The Steelers also lost for the third straight game, falling to second place in the AFC North. Defensive tackle Cam Heyward had a blunt reaction to the loss, saying […]

The Kansas City Chiefs are the back-to-back defending Super Bowl champions, and they have their sights trained on a three-peat. Should they accomplish that goal, they’d become the first team in NFL history to be crowned champions in three consecutive years. The Chiefs are well on their way to improving their record to 15-1, as […]

Former Columbus Blue Jackets forward Patrik Laine returned to Nationwide Arena for the first time since being dealt to the Montreal Canadiens in a move that he requested; he felt a change of scenery would be best for him and his career. Before Monday night’s matchup, Laine had a frank review of his time with […]

While the Boston Bruins defeated the Metropolitan Division-leading Washington Capitals by a 4-1 score at TD Garden Monday night, they suffered a significant loss up front. Sniper David Pastrnak suffered an upper-body injury midway through the second period and did not return to action, though he was briefly seen on the bench following the injury. […]

While not generally considered a dirty player, Tampa Bay Lightning sniper Nikita Kucherov will hear from the NHL Department of Player Safety thanks to his actions on Monday against the rival Florida Panthers. He caught Panthers assistant captain Matthew Tkachuk with a brutal knee-on-knee hit and was assessed a five-minute major and a game misconduct. […]

Finnish forward Patrik Laine has been a revelation for the Montreal Canadiens, scoring eight power-play goals since his return to action in early December; he’s already second overall in the NHL for goals scored with the man advantage. Laine returns to Columbus for the first time since the trade to Montreal, and he’s admitting that […]

Could this be the next domino to fall with the struggling New York Rangers? And after the volatile trade of former captain Jacob Trouba to the Anaheim Ducks and former No. 2 overall pick Kaapo Kakko to the Seattle Kraken, the Rangers are making an eyebrow-raising roster move. Veteran Chris Kreider, the longest-tenured member of […]

Despite earning a victory on Sunday over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the Dallas Cowboys learned before their matchup that it was mathematically impossible for them to return to the postseason. The grim news was confirmed to the team not long before kickoff, something that head coach Mike McCarthy admitted was difficult to take in via […]

Despite a 3-1 victory on Friday night over the Dallas Stars to temporarily halt their bleeding, the New York Rangers fell right back into the loss column on Sunday night against the visiting Carolina Hurricanes at Madison Square Garden. Not only did the Hurricanes defeat the Rangers by a 3-1 final to send them to […]

The Calgary Flames have confirmed a switch up in their coaching staff, but they’ve also not joined the three NHL clubs that have terminated a head coach. Flames assistant coach Brad Larsen has been granted an indefinite leave of absence from the club to attend to an undisclosed family matter. Meanwhile, the Flames have promoted […]

The Rempire State Building has officially been decommissioned for the foreseeable future. New York Rangers forward Matt Rempe, who draws his nickname from the iconic New York skyscraper close to where the Rangers play, has been slapped with an eight-game suspension by the NHL for his elbow to the head of Dallas Stars defenseman Miro […]

The Philadelphia Eagles are taking on the Washington Commanders but will have to play the rest of the game without defensive back CJ Gardner-Johnson. He was ejected from the game after picking up his second unsportsmanlike conduct penalty, and he made sure to give a NSFW gesture to the jeering Commanders fans as he was […]

While the Detroit Lions are the most injury-riddled team in the National Football League, they’re having no problem imposing their will on the Chicago Bears on Sunday afternoon at Soldier Field. As the two rivals approach halftime, the Lions built up a comfortable 20-0 lead thanks to scoring on their first four offensive possessions. And […]

Despite reports of an alleged rift between Vancouver Canucks teammates J.T. Miller and Elias Pettersson, the latter wants to make it clear that he doesn’t appreciate what he feels are made-up stories. The Swedish forward recently met with media members and directly addressed the rumors of a feud between himself and his teammate. He also […]

It was a long time coming for Toronto Maple Leafs goaltender Matt Murray, who finally played in his first NHL contest since April of 2023 when he was hurt against the Detroit Red Wings. Murray made 25 saves in his first NHL win in nearly 25 months, helping the Maple Leafs send the Buffalo Sabres […]

While the Toronto Maple Leafs are enjoying another strong campaign, speculation continues to grow regarding the future of half of the team’s famed “Core 4” of players including Auston Matthews, William Nylander, John Tavares, and Mitch Marner. While both Matthews and Nylander are under contract for the next several years, Marner and Tavares are eligible […]

The Nashville Predators entered the 2024-25 NHL season viewed by most fans and pundits as legitimate Stanley Cup contenders. After all, they had signed two of the biggest fish available on the open market. Former Tampa Bay Lightning captain Steven Stamkos along with 2023 Conn Smythe Trophy winner Jonathan Marchessault through free agency, while also […]