Marc-Andre Fleury made 35 saves even as the Blackhawks lost Monday. | AP Photo/Ted S. WarrenFleury is now 4-0-1 with a .956 save percentage over his last five starts, including a heroic effort in Monday’s 3-2 shootout loss. SEATTLE — Coming off a perfect 3-0-0 week with a .957 save percentage, Marc-Andre Fleury was named Monday morning the NHL’s second star of the week. The veteran goalie then delivered arguably his most heroic performance yet this month on Monday afternoon in the Blackhawks’ 3-2 shootout loss to the Kraken. “It was probably a good thing ‘Flower’ was on his game, because he got us a point tonight,” interim coach Derek King said. With the worn-out Hawks inundated in their own zone throughout the first and third periods, then again in overtime, Fleury almost singlehandedly c
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Lee Elia (right) had a lot to be frustrated about in his two seasons as the Cubs’ manager. | Sun-TimesRadio icon’s death brings back memories of the former Cubs manager’s tirade in 1983 and a column-that-wasn’t two decades later. My friend and ultimate sports nut Les Grobstein died Sunday, and as the shock and sadness wear off, I’m left, as one is at such moments, with memories. And the biggest one with Les — and maybe the most amusing (certainly the wildest and longest-lasting) — is of him recording Cubs manager Lee Elia’s profane, hide-the-children rant after a game at Wrigley Field almost 39 years ago. I wasn’t there that day, but I heard about the tape the way other writers in Chicago and around the country did: via word spreading of an underground sports recording so intense, f
Read MoreSupport our high school sports coverage by becoming a digital subscriber. Subscribe now. SOUTH PASADENA — For the first six weeks of the high school basketball season, the Taft boys basketball team was getting praised as the early front runner to win the City Section’s Open Division. The Toreadors, led by a high-flying act that includes Keyon Kensie and AJ Johnson, started the season with a win over Windward and ended the calendar year 9-1. But since the turn of the year, Birmingham Charter has emerged from the shadows of a COVID-19 laden December that’s seemingly impacted every Los Angeles-based sports team from preps to pros as a front runner itself. The Patriots dominated Crossroads in a 78-55 victory in the Martin Luther King Jr. Day showcase at South Pasadena High Monday night. Bi...
Read MoreThe Kraken surged in the third period and beat the Blackhawks 3-2 in a shootout. | AP Photo/Ted S. WarrenJones tested out of COVID-19 protocols Monday but missed his fourth straight game, and the Hawks’ undermanned defense cracked without its biggest minutes-eater in a 3-2 shootout loss. SEATTLE — For three games, Seth Jones’ absence didn’t seem to be hurting the Blackhawks nearly as much as expected. On Monday, however, it did. The Hawks’ defense was gradually worn down by the Kraken to the point of exhaustion, and Marc-Andre Fleury’s constant heroics in goal eventually proved unable to save them. The 3-2 shootout loss ended their four-game winning streak, as well as the Kraken’s nine-game losing streak. “We were sloppy,” interim coach Derek King said. “We had moments where we looked good
Read MoreLOS ANGELES — The Clippers are going all out encouraging fans to vote Paul George into the NBA All-Star Game for the eighth time. That’s going pretty well: after the league announced its second batch of voting returns last week, George was fourth among Western Conference frontcourt players. But the Clippers haven’t yet been able to offer any encouraging news about whether George might be available to play in that event on Feb. 20 in Cleveland – or at any time in the near future. “Not anything we’re ready to discuss right now, so really no update,” Clippers coach Tyronn Lue said before his team’s 139-133 victory over the Indiana Pacers on Monday afternoon at Crypto.com Arena – a couple of days past the three-week mark since the team’s Christmas Day announcement that George suffered a torn u
Read MoreRapper Vic Mensah was arrested January 15, 2022 at Dulles Airport. | ROBIN MARCHANT/GETTY IMAGESVic Mensah, 28, arrived about 7 a.m. on board a flight that had departed from Ghana. A Chicago rapper was arrested after a cache of drugs were found in his luggage Saturday morning at Washington Dulles International Airport. Vic Mensah, 28, arrived about 7 a.m. on board a flight that had departed from Ghana, according to a statement from U.S. Customs and Boarder Protection. During a secondary baggage examination, customs officers found about 41 grams of liquid LSD, about 124 grams of Psilocybin capsules, 178 grams of Psilocybin gummies and six grams of Psilocybin mushrooms concealed inside Mensah’s luggage, officials said. Airport police responded and took Mensah into custody on felony narc...
Read MoreBy JOSH DUBOW AP Pro Football Writer The Las Vegas Raiders have fired General Manager Mike Mayock after three seasons and will begin a search for a coach and GM following their second playoff berth in the past 19 seasons. The Raiders announced the move to get rid of Mayock on Monday, two days after losing their wild-card playoff game to the Cincinnati Bengals, 26-19. “We thank Mike for his contributions over the last three years in helping to form the foundation for the franchise to build upon in its future,” the team said in a statement. The Raiders have already made a request to interview New England Patriots director of player personnel Dave Ziegler for the GM job, as well as Patriots assistant Jerod Mayo for head coach, according to a person familiar with the request. The person spoke
Read MoreAld. Byron Sigcho-Lopez (25th) speaks as dozens gather for a protest against alleged toxic pollution blowing from Sims Metal Management in the 2500 block of South Paulina Street in Pilsen on the Lower West Side. | Ashlee Rezin/Sun-TimesDozens of people, including Ald. Byron Sigcho-Lopez, gathered near the site of Sims Metal Management, where they demanded a public hearing with city officials as part of the permit review process. On a day of remembrance for civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., several Southwest Side environmental groups held a rally in Pilsen to allege environmental racism on the Southwest Side as a metal shredder company awaits approval for a new operating permit. Dozens of people, including Ald. Byron Sigcho-Lopez (25th), gathered near the site of Sims Metal M
Read MoreBoys Basketball Lyman Simmons, Snow Canyon (Jr.) Snow Canyon is rolling through the season still undefeated, and the steady play of junior big man Lyman Simmons has been the catalyst. As Snow Canyon sits at 16-0 this season, Simmons is averaging 16.6 points, 7.9 rebounds and 1.7 assists. Last week he scored 16 points in each of Snow Canyon’s region wins over Dixie and Pine View. Against Pine View he recorded a double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds, his fourth double-double of the season. “Continues to lead us in scoring and rebounding as he’s done for the past two years but especially this year has sacrificed individual stats for just making the right play,” said Snow Canyon coach Doug Meacham. “He’s a winner and wants to do whatever it takes to help us win games and he’s continued
Read MoreAfter nearly three-and-a-half years, the forest supervisor of the Angeles National Forest is leaving his post, taking a job in Washington, D.C. FILE – Jerry Perez, seen at the U.S. Forest Service headquarters in Arcadia on Wednesday, Oct. 24, 2018, returns to the U.S. Forest Service as the new supervisor for the Angeles National Forest after leaving Bureau of Land Management. He has resigned his position, effective Feb. 11, 2022, to take a position in fire management within the USFS in Washington, D.C.(Photo by Sarah Reingewirtz, Pasadena Star-News/SCNG)Jerry Perez, 60, is moving into a high-ranking position in the U.S. Forest Service as national director of fire and aviation management, overseeing the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise, Idaho and the National Fire Training Center i
Read MoreOn MLK Day, Utah legislators announce working group on diversity and inclusion for K-12 education
Shafkat Anowar, Deseret News Utah leaders announced the creation of a new working group that will focus on diversity and inclusion in classrooms on Monday. The announcement was held at the southwest corner of the Utah State Capitol — near the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. plaque. "There is strength in our diversity," Gov. Spencer Cox said in a statement about the bipartisan task force. "I look forward to working with this group to find ways to ensure every child in every school feels valued and respected." Multiple elected officials will create a working group to incorporate a diversity curriculum in K-12 schools throughout the state, according to a news release from the Utah House of Representatives. The Utah Diversity and Inclusion Commission will be chaired by House Majority Leader Rep. ...
Read MoreThick ash on an airport runway was delaying aid deliveries to the Pacific island nation of Tonga, where significant damage was being reported days after a huge undersea volcanic eruption and tsunami. New Zealand's military is sending much-needed drinking water and other supplies, but said the ash on the runway will delay the flight at least a day. A towering ash cloud since Saturday’s eruption had prevented earlier flights. New Zealand is also sending two navy ships to Tonga that will leave Tuesday and pledged an initial 1 million New Zealand dollars ($680,000) toward recovery efforts. Communications with Tonga have been extremely limited, but New Zealand and Australia sent military surveillance flights to assess the damage on Monday. U.N. humanitarian officials and Tonga’s government “r
Read MoreFor years, a group of local conservationists has tried to acquire a “missing mile” of land at Mount Diablo’s north peak surrounded by vast swaths of open space it had already protected against future development. Now the group, Save Mount Diablo, has secured that critical square-mile piece by forging a $1 million conservation easement agreement with a local equestrian society that was considering selling some of the property for construction of single-family homes. The coveted 154-acre property — along with the creeks and species such as the Golden eagles that treat it as habitat — will now forever be unfettered, though the Concord Mt. Diablo Trail Ride Association still plans to allow horse riding there. “Before the campaign, this was just a pipe dream,” said Ted Clement, the group’s exec
Read MoreUtah celebrates Martin Luther King Jr. Day; President Nelson issues call to ‘abandon prejudice’
Jeffrey Dadah, KSL-TV Notable figures and groups across Utah are remembering the life of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. with events and tributes to the civil rights icon. Russell M. Nelson, president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, commemorated the life of King in social media posts Monday on Martin Luther King Jr. Day. "The Book of Mormon teaches that 'black and white, bond and free, male and female … all are alike unto God,'" Nelson said on social media. "May God continue to bless us as we labor together to abandon attitudes and actions of prejudice." Events took place throughout Utah on Monday to remember King, with marches in Ogden and Salt Lake City. The Ogden chapter of the NAACP held a march Monday morning that went from the Marshall White Center to the Ogden A...
Read MoreUtah guard David Jenkins Jr. (1) drives against Arizona State guard Marreon Jackson during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game, Monday, Jan. 17, 2022, in Tempe, Ariz. | Rick Scuteri, Associated PressArizona State’s Jalen Graham hits a floater in the lane with four seconds remaining to lift Sun Devils to a 64-62 win over the struggling Utes When you have as thin of a margin for error as this University of Utah men’s basketball team does this season in new coach Craig Smith’s inaugural year on the hill, you have to do all the little things right to pull out Pac-12 victories. That didn’t happen Monday afternoon in front of 6,482 fans at Desert Financial Arena in Tempe, Arizona, and as a result the Runnin’ Utes lost a heartbreaker 64-62 to one of the league’s other bottom-tier te
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