Blashill earns 200th win as Wings coach – Thursday Morning Sports Update

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NHL – National Hockey League
Last Night
Detroit Red Wings 3, Winnipeg Jets 1

Red Wings 3, Jets 1 – Gagner scores 2 to top 500 points, Red Wings beat Jets 3-1
Sam Gagner scored twice to top 500 career points, and the Detroit Red Wings beat the Winnipeg Jets 3-1. Michael Rasmussen had the tiebreaking goal at 9:11 of the third period for Detroit, Dylan Larkin had two assists and Thomas Greiss finished with 32 saves. Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill got his 200th victory. Detroit won for the second straight night after beating Boston 5-3 on Tuesday. Mark Scheifele scored for the Winnipeg, which has lost three straight. Connor Hellebuyck made 32 saves.

Tonight
Seattle Kraken at Chicago Blackhawks, 8:30 p.m.

MLB – Major League Baseball – Opening Day 2022
Today
Milwaukee Brewers at Chicago Cubs, 2:20 p.m.

NBA – National Basketball Association
Last Night
Boston Celtics 117, Chicago Bulls 94
Dallas Mavericks 131, Detroit Pistons 113

Celtics 117, Bulls 94 – Celtics rout Bulls for 50th, close in on No. 2 spot in East
Jaylen Brown scored 25 points, Al Horford added 17 on 7-of-7 shooting and the Boston Celtics routed the Chicago Bulls 117-94 on Wednesday night for their 50th victory. The Celtics have won three in a row and are 27-6 since Jan. 22. They can wrap up the second spot in the Eastern Conference playoffs Thursday night with a victory at Milwaukee. Jayson Tatum scored 16 points for Boston. He was 5 of 18 from the field, making only one of eight from 3-point range. The Bulls have lost two straight. They claimed a playoff berth Tuesday. DeMar DeRozan scored 16 points for Chicago, and Nikola Vucevic added 13 points. Vucevic had four of the Bulls’ 17 turnovers.

Mavericks 131, Pistons 113 – Luka Doncic-led Mavericks beat Pistons 131-113 for 50th win
Luka Doncic had 26 points, 14 assists and eight rebounds to lead the Dallas Mavericks to a 131-113 win over the Detroit Pistons. The Mavericks are 20 games above .500 for the first time since 2011 when they went on to win the NBA title. They’re set up to earn home-court advantage in the playoffs for the first time since coach Jason Kidd was their point guard during the championship season. Dallas reached the 50-win mark for the first time in seven years, and just the second time since winning their only NBA title. Cade Cunningham had 25 points, nine assists and seven rebounds for the Pistons.

NBA – Bulls’ Ball to miss rest of season because of knee injury
Chicago Bulls point guard Lonzo Ball will miss the rest of the season following another setback in his recovery from surgery for a torn meniscus in his left knee. Ball’s final game was Jan. 14, and he had surgery two weeks later. The Bulls hoped a recent 10-day shutdown in activities after he experienced discomfort would resolve the issue and allow him to return this season. But he felt pain again. Coach Billy Donovan said this week it was “disappointing” and there would be discussion to determine the next steps.

NBA – Silver says NBA plans to keep next All-Star Game in Utah
The NBA plans to keep its next All-Star Game in Salt Lake City, despite its opposition to Utah’s ban on transgender youth athletes playing on girls teams. The Utah Jazz are set to host the event next February but there was speculation the league could take it away because of what the team called “discriminatory legislation.” But Commissioner Adam Silver said Wednesday the event will stay put as planned. The NBA pulled the 2017 All-Star Game out of Charlotte because of its opposition to a North Carolina law known as HB2 that limited anti-discrimination protections for lesbian, gay and transgender people.

NCAAHKY – NCAA Ice Hockey – Frozen Four
Tonight
2022 NCAA Frozen Four – National Semifinals – TD Garden, Boston, MA
1 Michigan vs. 1 Denver, 5:00 p.m.
1 Minnesota State vs. 2 Minnesota, 8:30 p.m.

NCAAHKY – NCAA Frozen Four in Boston a clash of the Midwest and West
The NCAA Frozen Four features a foursome that doesn’t include any teams from the East. It’s the first time since 2011 that the Eastern schools were shut out. Overall top seed Michigan will play Denver in the early semifinal on Thursday, with Minnesota and Minnesota State meeting in the nightcap. The field has already claimed 22 NCAA hockey titles, with Minnesota State the only school still in search of its first. Minnesota State goalie Dryden McKay, Minnesota’s Ben Myers and Denver’s Bobby Brink are all finalists for the Hobey Baker Award that goes to the top player in college hockey.

Golf – The Masters – Tiger Woods overshadows Masters with so many scenarios
Golf has a bright future and isn’t quite ready to let go of Tiger Woods. Even as six players can end the week at No. 1 in the world, even as Rory McIlroy goes after the career Grand Slam, this Masters is all about Tiger Woods. He is playing some 14 months after a horrific car crash that nearly cost him his right leg. Even on the final day of practice, there wasn’t an inch of space outside the ropes to watch Woods. Next up is to see how he handles it while keeping score.

NFL – Attorneys General warn NFL to improve treatment of women
The attorneys general of six states have written to NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell , expressing concern over the league’s treatment of female employees and admonishing him for a lack of improvement to the league’s workplace culture. Without improvement, the attorneys general warned of potential legal action. The letter outlines concerns of gender discrimination ranging from the NFL’s treatment of women who have experienced domestic violence to the hiring and promotion of women in NFL offices. The letter comes as Congress investigates how the league has handled claims of sexual harassment in the front office of the Washington Commanders.

WNBA – Dream acquire No. 1 overall pick in WNBA draft from Mystics
The Atlanta Dream have acquired the No. 1 overall pick in the WNBA draft from the Washington Mystics. The Mystics acquired the No. 3 overall pick Monday and the No. 14 selection in the second round. Washington also has the right to swap its 2023 first-round pick with Atlanta’s first-round pick acquired from Los Angeles on Feb. 5. The Dream traded Chennedy Carter and the rights to Li Yueru to the Sparks for Erica Wheeler, Los Angeles’ first-round draft choice next year and the No. 15 pick this season. This is only the second No. 1 overall draft pick for Atlanta.

Russia/Ukraine – Boston Marathon excludes runners residing in Russia, Belarus
Athletes from Russia and Belarus previously accepted to compete in this year’s Boston Marathon who are currently residing in either country will not be allowed to participate. The Boston Marathon Association, which manages the world’s oldest annual marathon, made the announcement. The exclusion also extends to athletes previously accepted into the B.A.A.’s 5K event. However, it doesn’t affect Russian or Belarusian athletes who are not residents of the countries. They will be allowed to compete but won’t be able to run under their country’s flag.

AHL – American Hockey League
Last Night
Grand Rapids Griffins 2, Cleveland Monsters 1 – OT

AHL – AHL player suspended 8 games for ‘homophobic language’
The American Hockey League announced that Rochester Americans forward Ben Holmstrom has been suspended eight games for “homophobic language.” The 34-year-old Holmstrom, a career minor leaguer who was signed to a professional tryout in February, was assessed a game misconduct for using offensive language at the end of the first period of a home game against the Utica Comets on March 30. He has already served two games of the suspension. AHL officials say that as part of his punishment Holmstrom will participate in “diversity and inclusive education.”

MCCAA – Junior College Athletics
Today
Baseball
Lake Michigan College at Grand Rapids Community College, 2:00 p.m./4:30 p.m. (DH)

MHSAA – Benton Harbor’s Gondrezick named 2nd team Division 2 All State
Benton Harbor junior point guard Grand Gondrezick was named to the Michigan Division II, 2nd team all state list.  He helped lead the Tigers to a district and regional championship, before falling to Grand Rapids Catholic Central in the state quarterfinals.  The Tigers finished the season at 22-3.   Gondrezick’s Benton Harbor teammate Trucel Singleton was named to the honorable mention list, along with Otsego’s Ashton Atwater and Andrew Brown of Three Rivers.   Mason Docks of the State Champion team from Williamston was the Division 2 player of the year.

MHSAA – High School Sports
Yesterday
Girls Soccer
Gull Lake 8, Vicksburg 0
Portage Northern 3, Kalamazoo Hackett 0
Portage Central 8, Okemos 0

Today
Baseball
Niles at Buchanan, 4:00 p.m.
Kalamazoo Christian at Bridgman, 4:15 p.m.
Gull Lake at Haslett, 4:00 p.m.
Portage Northern at Vicksburg, 4:00 p.m.
Battle Creek Pennfield at Parchment, 4:15 p.m.

Softball
Niles at Buchanan, 4:00 p.m.
Kalamazoo Christian at Bridgman, 4:15 p.m.
Portage Northern at Vicksburg, 4:00 p.m.
Battle Creek Pennfield at Parchment, 4:15 p.m.

Girls Soccer
Our Lady of the Lake at Battle Creek Academy, 5:30 p.m.
Coloma at Bridgman, 5:00 p.m.
Niles at Buchanan, 5:00 p.m.
Kalamazoo Loy Norrix at Harper Creek, 6:00 p.m.
Olivet at Comstock, 5:30 p.m.
Parma Western at Battle Creek Lakeview, 6:30 p.m.
Battle Creek Central at Battle Creek Pennfield, 6:30 p.m.

Girls Tennis
Berrien Springs at Kalamazoo Hackett, 4:30 p.m.