🔴 Mavericks May Need to Forfeit Games

Fastest goal in NHL history, 16 game winning streak ends, Ekblad suspended 20 games, and more!

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Sportie Newsletter
March 17, 2025

🏀 Basketball

Mavericks May Need to Forfeit

The Dallas Mavericks are entering the danger zone.

The injury-riddled Mavericks left Friday’s game in Houston with just seven healthy players after veteran guard Dante Exum suffered a season-ending left-hand fracture.

The Mavericks could be at risk of forfeiting games during the final stretch of the regular season because of a growing list of injuries and NBA salary cap rules.

These days, there are more players on the injury report than in uniform.

According to NBA rules, a team must list a minimum of 12 active players for each game, with no fewer than eight players sitting on the bench in uniform.

🏒 Hockey

Mountour scores fastest OT goal in NHL history

Brandon Mountour had the fastest goal in NHL overtime history, scoring his second goal of the game four seconds into the extra period to give the Seattle Kraken a 5-4 comeback victory over the Montreal Canadiens on Wednesday night.

Chandler Stephenson won the faceoff, with the puck going right to Montour as he crossed the red line. He raced in on goalie Jakub Dobes and beat him with a quick shot to the upper-right corner.

Ekblad Suspended 20 Games

Aaron Ekblad was suspended 20 games, without pay, for violating the terms of the NHL/NHLPA Performance Enhancing Substances Program, the NHL announced on Monday.

Under the terms of the collective bargaining agreement, the suspension to the Florida Panthers defenseman is accompanied by a mandatory referral to the NHL/NHLPA Program for Substance Abuse and Behavioral Health for evaluation and possible treatment.

Because the Panthers only have 18 regular-season games remaining, the 29-year-old will not be eligible to return until the third game of the Eastern Conference First Round.

⚾️ Baseball

Ohtani Rips Homer In Tokyo

Ohtani crushed a two-run homer to deep right field in the third inning of the Dodgers' 5-1 win in an exhibition against the Yomiuri Giants. It was the second of three homers the Dodgers hit that inning off Giants ace Shosei Togo. Michael Conforto led off the inning with a solo shot, then Teoscar Hernández launched a two-run blast to cap a five-spot for L.A.

🏈 Football

Aaron Rodgers Hopes to Sign With 1 Team - and not the Steelers

In typical Aaron Rodgers fashion, the quarterback is taking his sweet old time weighing his options. The Pittsburgh Steelers and New York Giants have offers on the table. But according to NFL insider Mike Silver of The Athletic, neither city is where Rodgers wants to be.

Silver reports he's talked with more than a dozen league sources, all of whom have shared Rodgers wants to be in Minnesota, not Pittsburgh. The Vikings are "strongly weighing the possibility of pursuing Rodgers as a replacement for 2024 starter Sam Darnold."