TAMPA, Fla. — Now comes the hard part for Hofstra.

No, not recovering from the heartbreak of this special season coming to a premature end. Friday’s 90-70 first-round loss to Alabama served as an unceremonious end after the Pride reached the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 25 years.

No, the hard part for Hofstra coach Speedy Claxton is keeping his brilliant backcourt intact.

Keeping shooting guard and leading scorer Cruz Davis for his final year of eligibility.

From lifting tires and pulling fire trucks to carrying the most weight, competing in the World’s Strongest Firefighting competition takes incredible strength.

“My whole goal was to have minimal mistakes, try my best and have consistent performance across all the events. That’s what wins competitions at the end of the day in Strongman, is consistency,” Evan Yaworski, who’s a firefighter with the Royal Canadian Air Force and based in Winnipeg, said.

The Saskatoon-born man lifted his way to the top of the podium earlier this month, clinching the title of the World’s Strongest Firefighter. He became the first Canadian to do so.

“I think it’s pretty neat to be the first person to be able to do this for Canada,” Yaworski said.

The World’s Strongest Firefighter is held at The Arnold, an annual multi-sport event in Ohio consisting of bodybuilding and strongman competitions.

“We have firefighters competing from around the world. This year we had over 150 registered athletes,” John Byrne, the World’s Strongest Firefighter co-founder, said.

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The competition first started after the catastrophic wildfires in California in 2018. It was created by Arnold Schwarzenegger to honour first responders and raise money for a number of non-profits.

“To date, we have raised half a million dollars towards firefighter charities helping widows,” Byrne said.

The World’s Strongest Firefighter is a unique strength competition because all weight classes and genders compete together.

“It takes the Wilks system, and it takes pound for pound who the strongest firefighter is,” Byrne said.

That’s why Yaworski, who is classified as a lightweight, was still able to win it all. He coached himself throughout the entire training process.

“I’ll do my own programming and if I’m stumped or need a different perspective on things, I’ll talk to people with more experience,” Yaworski said.

Yaworski works tirelessly on his passion, something that goes hand in hand with his career.

“It’s expected you’re in shape as a firefighter, because at the end of the day you need to be reliable in a physically and mentally stressful job,” Yaworski said.

1:54
21 athletes compete for nationals spot at Winnipeg strongman event

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EDMONTON – It doesn’t matter how their own season has gone this year, the Florida Panthers weren’t going to miss out on a chance to cause the Edmonton Oilers further misery.

Sergei Bobrovsky recorded 21 saves to earn his fourth shutout of the season and 53rd of his career as the Panthers continued to plague Edmonton, emerging with a 4-0 victory over the Oilers on Thursday in a rematch of the last two Stanley Cup finals — both won by Florida.

“We all remember each other very well during the two years we’ve been playing against each other and spending a lot of time in this building, so being back gives you a little extra motivation and extra boost,” said Anton Lundell, one of Florida’s goal scorers.

Cole Reinhardt, A.J. Greer and Carter Verhaeghe had the other goals for the injury-riddled Panthers (34-31-3), who snapped a two-game losing skid.

Sam Bennett, Evan Rodrigues and Michael Benning had two assists each.

Benning, taken by Florida in the fourth round (95th overall) of the 2020 Entry Draft, was playing in just his fourth career NHL game. The 24-year-old Edmonton-area native defenceman already has three points.

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Blades Bio January 2026: David Lewandowski

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“It was a hard and simple game, we stuck to our strengths,” he said. “I’ve only been here a short time, but it was fun to be a part of it and keep it going. A little extra excitement, I got some friends and family in the building, which is awesome.”

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The Panthers are almost certain to miss the playoffs and a chance to defend their back-to-back titles.

“I think both teams have suffered the same challenges over the last three years,” said Florida head coach Paul Maurice. “We’ve all had long runs, even when we went to the (2022-23) final, they went to the conference final that year.

“Finding that juice in the regular season is a real, real challenge probably right now more so for us than them with the players that are out, and also we are so far out of the playoffs now. But I think we had the juice tonight and had the advantage there.”

Florida has been hit hard by injuries all season long with the most man-games lost in the league including many lengthy ones to key players. Among those out of the lineup on Thursday were Aleksander Barkov, Brad Marchand and Sam Reinhart. Only defenceman Gustav Forsling has managed to appear in all 68 games this season.

On the Oilers side of the ledger, it was not only a kick in the teeth to suffer another painful loss to the Panthers, but it comes at a costly time in the season with their own playoff fate up in the air.

“You’d be lying if you said it didn’t mean a little more,” said Oilers forward Ryan Nugent-Hopkins. “But at the same time, our mindset was we need two points at this time of year and where we are in the standings and pushing for the playoffs.

“It obviously goes without saying that there’s lots of history there. It’s a frustrating night.”

The Oilers (34-27-9) saw a two-game winning streak halted and missed out on an opportunity to move ahead of the idle Anaheim Ducks into first in the Pacific Division.

“Look, everyone comes to the rink with the right mindset,” said veteran Oilers defenceman Darnell Nurse. “This team, we want to win. Every day you come to the rink, you want to win. You want to compete.

“You want to beat whoever’s on the other side, whether it’s the Florida Panthers or the Calgary Flames. It doesn’t matter.”

The Oilers are now 1-9-2 when they have had the opportunity to win three games in a row and fell to 0-10-2 this season when Connor McDavid fails to collect a point.

Edmonton was still without star forward Leon Draisaitl, out for the rest of the regular season with a lower-body injury.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 20, 2026.

&copy 2026 The Canadian Press

EDMONTON – Sergei Bobrovsky made 21 saves to earn his fourth shutout of the season as the Florida Panthers continued to plague Edmonton, emerging with a 4-0 victory over the Oilers on Thursday in a rematch of the last two Stanley Cup finals.

Cole Reinhardt, A.J. Greer, Anton Lundell and Carter Verhaeghe scored for the injury-riddled Panthers (34-31-3), who snapped a two-game losing skid.

Sam Bennett, Evan Rodrigues and Michael Benning all had two assist games. The Panthers are almost certain to miss the playoffs and a chance to defend their back-to-back titles.

Connor Ingram made 19 stops in the loss for Edmonton (34-27-9).

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The Oilers had a modest two-game winning streak halted and missed out on an opportunity to move ahead of idle Anaheim into first in the Pacific Division.

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Edmonton remained without star forward Leon Draisaitl, out for the rest of the regular season with a lower body injury.

Takeaways

Panthers: Benning, a fourth-round (95th overall) selection in the 2020 Entry Draft by Florida, was playing in just his fourth career NHL game. The 24-year-old Edmonton-area native defenceman already has three points.

Oilers: Captain Connor McDavid is still two goals short of 400, one assist away from 800 and three points shy of 1,200 for his career.

Key moment:

Florida went up 3-0 on the power play with 5:39 to play in the second period as Lundell put away his 18th goal of the season on a loos puck in front of the net.

Key stat

Florida has been hit hard by injuries all season long with the most man-games lost in the league including many lengthy IR stints. Among those out of the lineup on Thursday were Aleksander Barkov, Brad Marchand and Sam Reinhart. Only defenceman Gustav Forsling has managed to appear in all 68 games this season. Conversely, six Oilers have played in every game: Connor McDavid, Matt Savoie, Vasily Podkolzin, Evan Bouchard, Mattias Ekholm, and Darnell Nurse.

Up next

Oilers: Host the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday.

Panthers: Visit the Calgary Flames on Friday.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 19, 2026.

&copy 2026 The Canadian Press

The Montreal Canadiens had what was billed as a battle for first place against the Detroit Red Wings in January. The Canadiens were dominated at the Bell Centre, losing 4-0.

Since then, both clubs have settled lower in the standings, yet both are still having outstanding seasons.

The Canadiens looked for revenge in Detroit, but they allowed a late goal to fall again to the Red Wings 3-1.

Wilde Horses 

It’s time that ‘load management’ comes to the National Hockey League. It’s a concept almost overused in the NBA, but in the NHL there is a reluctance to allow a player rest.

This makes no sense. Hockey may be the most gruelling sport of all: an 82-game schedule with physical punishment doled out on a regular basis.

There’s no shame in Brendan Gallagher needing a rest. He’s an aging player. The way to get the most out of Gallagher in the playoffs is to rest him right now for Alexandre Texier or Joe Veleno.

Recently, we have seen both Veleno and Texier back in the lineup and immediately improving the Canadiens. Texier and Veleno may not be better than Gallagher and Josh Anderson, but when the aging vets are tired or injured, the younger players are better options.

Veleno played his first game in 42 days in Detroit and he brought tremendous energy. Veleno is an excellent penalty killer. He is active. He has determination. He commits his entire body in an attempt to block shots. Veleno brought hunger to the contest.

The line with Veleno on it was sensational. With Phillip Danault and Gallagher joining Veleno, the line had 10 shots for and zero against on the night for a 100 per cent Corsi. Remarkable.

Texier brought the same intensity when he got back into the lineup. Texier remains strong. Though the goals haven’t come, he brings strong 200-foot play. Load management if the Canadiens were bringing in terrible players from the press box would be a terrible idea, but there are high-quality players waiting to play.

It was another defensive contest between these two clubs. Juraj Slafkovsky finally broke the deadlock of zeroes late in the second period with a power play marker. It was another goal for the big three as Cole Caufield and Nick Suzuki provided the helpers.

Slafkovsky has 25 goals this season, and the line has 14 goals in eight games since being reunited.

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Wilde Goats

The Canadiens are not getting enough from their second line. A second line is responsible for goal scoring, but since it became Alex Newhook, Ivan Demidov and Oliver Kapanen eight games ago, the line has only three goals.

What’s worse than that goal total is that they are spending far too much time in their own zone. The Corsi share in their eight games together is only 41 per cent. They are getting caved in.

Kapanen is a fine 200-foot player with a good brain for the game, but he is not a player who creates transitions. He is not a puck carrier. When the second line was successful, it was during a time when Slafkovsky was carrying it up ice well and creating fast transitions into the offensive zone.

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Newhook and Demidov are wingers. They do not transition well, though they both should be fairly good at it with their puck skills and speed on their skates. The second line is desperate for a player who can transition effectively from defence to offence.

Kapanen may not be a centre, or he is a centre who needs easier match-ups. There is presently too much defending. With Slafkovsky looking so comfortable with Suzuki and Caufield, the organization is in the hunt for a second line centre who can ignite the success of his wingers.

Demidov is simply not getting the puck enough in the offensive zone with Kapanen as his centre. Demidov barely gets five-on-five touches all night, and is forced to wait for a power play to exhibit any offensive skills at all.

A defending Demidov is not a good Demidov. Right now, that’s most of his night: chasing the puck in the defensive zone for 45 seconds. It’s three talented players, but three players who do not mesh well together to get the most out of each other.

It was the second line that was on the ice for the tying goal. The actual goal was a lucky bounce off a forward standing in front of the net, but the shot only came because the line was far too passive in defending. Newhook stood passively in front of Patrick Kane allowing him to get the puck to the net.

The goal itself was unlucky, but hockey is chaos, and luck is created by playing the game in the attacking zone. That’s not a place that the second line is getting to. Every once in a while they have an offensive rush, but they simply don’t ever get a cycle going.

The game was lost with a stunning gaffe from Mike Matheson with only three minutes remaining. Matheson had it in his own zone facing no pressure, but then the puck rolled on him, and then he fell down. Alex Debrincat moved in all alone to count the winner.

Wilde Cards

It’s not expected that both an organization’s prospect club and top club are strong at the same time. Either the prospects have graduated for NHL strength, or they haven’t for AHL strength. The Canadiens have both rolling.

The Laval Rocket became the third team to qualify for the playoffs with a 5-1 win over Wilkes-Barre Scranton Wednesday night. It was an impressive win as the Penguins are one of the top teams in the league, and they were crushed by the Rocket.

Adam Engstrom was back in the lineup after a month-long absence. His presence was felt immediately forming a first pair with David Reinbacher that dominated.

Much like Juraj Slafkovsky branched out, and stopped deferring when taken off a line with Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield, the same thing happened when Reinbacher was forced to be the leader on defence without Engstrom.

Reinbacher has levelled up significantly with almost a point-per-game pace in his last eight with seven points. Reinbacher is also a plus-eight in his last eight. Reinbacher has started to get massive ice time with over 28 minutes in one contest as Head Coach Pascal Vincent has found a new favourite.

The ice time is significant. The reason is that it shows that the player can still mentally perform at a top-level without losing his concentration in decision making. Fatigue physically translates into fatigue mentally. Not many players can handle a massive amount of ice without their play degrading.

This is a significant development for Reinbacher and the Canadiens. It seems like he can handle anything at the AHL level.

Another prospect that’s on fire is Florian Xhekaj. The organization has high hopes that he can find another level to become a fourth line winger with toughness in the NHL. The Canadiens lack players with grit. Making their opponent play hard and punishing minutes is important, especially in the playoffs. Xhekaj has four goals in his last five games.

The only organizational issue for the playoffs is goaltending. With Jacob Fowler in Montreal, the Rocket absolutely must have Kaapo Kahkonen stay healthy and strong. His save percentage is .902, but the new backup, Hunter Jones, is only .844 in three appearances.

Brian Wilde, a Montreal-based sports writer, brings you Call of the Wilde on globalnews.ca after each Canadiens game.

The Rams have significantly improved this offseason by shoring up their cornerback room, which was their only real weakness, and by getting a commitment from quarterback Matthew Stafford for at least one more season.

You can argue that they have the NFL’s best overall roster, or at least in the top three, with very few starting job openings.

It’s a great position to be in, allowing them to be extremely narrow in addressing draft needs. In fact, probably no NFL team can stay truer to the best-player-available mantra than the Rams.

They can literally watch the draft unfold and go BPA rather than drafting for need every time they are on the clock.

They can also be flexible earlier in the draft by focusing on the future rather than seeking out Day 1 starter types simply to fill a hole.

Here is a look at how we think the first three rounds might play out for the Rams:

Round 1, No. 13

Ty Simpson, QB, Alabama

The Rams’ pursuit of Eagles wide receiver A.J. Brown is evidence that the club understands the need for another wide receiver. Davante Adams is in the last year of his contract and, at 33 years old, could play his final year with the Rams. The Rams need to find his replacement and someone they can pair with Puka Nacua.

They could look at that position with their first pick, but it’s predicated on who is still available when they’re on the clock. USC’s Makai Lemon makes some sense, in that case, but if he’s off the board — and that is not out of the question — the Rams won’t force the issue.

Tackle is also a position of need, and if Georgia’s Monroe Freeling is available, he would make sense as well. But as the only real bona fide first-round left tackle prospect, he’ll probably be gone before the Rams pick.

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Which brings us to Simpson, the second-best quarterback prospect in the draft behind Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza.

Yes, the Rams are in win-now mode. Conventional wisdom suggests the 13th pick overall should only yield a Day 1 starter.

But the work the Rams did in turning their only real weakness, cornerback, into a strength by trading for Trent McDuffie and signing Jaylen Watson allows them to be more creative with their first-round pick.

Essentially set across the roster, now would be the perfect time to proactively address quarterback, which will soon be a massive need given Stafford’s age and how he has gone into multiple offseasons unsure about returning for the following season.

The Rams could potentially set up a situation in which they have Stafford’s replacement on the roster. More importantly, whether it’s for one or two more years, Simpson can learn and develop under one of the NFL’s best coaching staffs, which will give him a real chance to be ready to take over for Stafford in a year or two.

Round 2, No. 61

Malachi Fields, WR, Notre Dame

As we mentioned earlier, the Rams’ interest in trading for Brown shows a recognition of their need at wide receiver.

They didn’t force the issue in the first round and opted to play the long game by drafting Simpson, the quarterback of their future.

The second round should be ripe with wide receiver options, including a few with the capability of being Day 1 starters.

Fields is a 6-foot-4, 218-pound classic X wide receiver who will benefit from playing alongside and learning from Adams and Nacua.

He’s not a burner by any stretch, but he’s a big, physical presence who can dominate opposing cornerbacks with his size, strength and ability to fight for balls. On tape, there are clear instances in which he was a physical mismatch for cornerbacks on 50-50 balls.

He’s also improving as a route runner and will get better at that part of the game simply by learning from Adams and Nacua.

Round 3, No. 93

Keionte Scott, CB, Miami

The Rams did a fantastic job addressing their cornerback room by adding McDuffie and Watson, who will man the perimeter spots and provide immediate and significant improvement.

But they aren’t done at cornerback, whether it’s to add depth or to lock down their slot corner.

As of now, Quentin Lake is penciled in as the nickel corner. But he’s a safety, so it’s not the most ideal situation.

Scott is a feisty, tough, physical playmaker in pass coverage, run defense and blitzes. He’s also a leader who will fit right into the team culture.

He’s projected to go somewhere between late in the second round and the third, which makes it a bit dicey that he’ll be there at No. 93. But Scott is someone they certainly could target in a trade-up scenario.

A look at the key March Madness 2026 games to watch Thursday:

(9) TCU vs. (8) Ohio State

12:15 p.m., CBS

This is when it all begins, when the Big Dance officially tips off with a matchup more suited for the College Football Playoff. The Horned Frogs needed to rip off eight Big 12 wins in nine games to have a chance at cracking the field. Bruce Thornton, the Buckeyes’ all-time leading scorer, is someone who could take over. The likely reward for whoever wins? No. 1 seed Duke.

(11) South Florida vs. (6) Louisville

1:30 p.m., TNT

Amid the coaching carousel chatter, Bryan Hodgson has the Bulls positioned as a potential Cinderella. The Cardinals won’t have star freshman Mikel Brown Jr. either, and will need to figure out how to replace his 18.2 points per game. Could this be the first true upset?

(12) High Point vs. (5) Wisconsin

1:50 p.m., TBS

High Point was a trendy pick to upset Purdue last year, and that buzz has returned after the Panthers landed a showdown with Wisconsin, which has a dynamic guard in Nick Boyd (20.6 points per game) but a difficult résumé to dissect. To avoid becoming the latest 5-12 upset, the Badgers will need to keep pace with the high-scoring Panthers.

(11) VCU vs. (6) North Carolina

6:50 p.m., TNT

With Caleb Wilson in their lineup, it’s not far-fetched to call the Tar Heels a contender. But without the star freshman, who is out for the remainder of the season, can they even make it to Saturday? That’ll depend on center Henri Veesaar (16.7 points, 8.7 rebounds). Phil Martelli Jr., the first-year VCU coach, will get a chance to make his legendary father proud with some March magic of his own.

(14) Penn vs. (3) Illinois

9:25 p.m., TNT

Other Ivy League schools have had Cinderella runs in recent years. This time, Penn, which hasn’t won a Tournament game since 1994, will get that chance. It won’t be easy, though. Brad Underwood’s group peaked at No. 5 in the AP Top 25 this season and features Keaton Wagler, who averages 17.9 points.

(9) Saint Louis vs. (8) Georgia

9:45 p.m., CBS

The Billikens were a mid-major program that appeared in the AP Top 25. Georgia has averaged the fifth-most points per game in the country (89.8), led by Jeremiah Wilkinson’s 17 points per game. A Saint Louis run would become an undeniable storyline and further elevate the status of head coach Josh Schertz, who recently inked a long-term deal.

The Red Sox re-negotiated a deal with lefty Danny Coulombe after an issue with his physical popped up. 

Multiple outlets reported that the veteran pitcher and the organization had originally agreed to a one-year deal for $2.25 million that included $750,000 in incentives. 

The reworked deal now pays him $1 million, along with an active roster bonus that gets Coulombe to $2.25 million as well as the $750,000 related to incentives, The Athletic reported. 

Coulombe, 36, is coming off a 2025 season where he pitched for the Rangers and Twins. 

He registered a 2.30 ERA while striking out 43 batters in as many innings. 

Neither the club nor the player’s representative has addressed the issue publicly. The initial reports did not indicate what was flagged in the physical to lead to the contract change.

Coulombe was out for three months in 2024 after he had surgery to remove bone chips in his elbow, and in 2025, he was out a month early in the season due to a forearm extensor strain. 

He also missed a part of the end of the year due to shoulder fatigue. 

When he arrived at camp this spring, he told reporters that he was healthy. 

“As you get older, it just gets a little harder to get warm in the morning,” Coulombe said. “But I feel good now. I feel healthy, and this is a good [Red Sox] bullpen.”

Coulombe has pitched 11 years in the major leagues, spending time with the Dodgers, A’s, Twins, Orioles and Rangers.