4 Nations Puck-a-Palooza

02/12/2025

By: Jeff Yoder

Good Morning!

We’re feeling reenergized after the Super Bowl news blitz. Football is about to say goodbye — except for that Valentine’s Day Parade in Philly on Friday. No one will ever top Jason Kelce’s OG Super Bowl speech. Our football savant Marissa Kasch will hit your inbox at lunch for a special edition — The Top 10 Moments of the 2024 NFL Season (Noon ET). Don’t miss it.

So what’s next? Glad you asked. The NHL and NBA All-Star breaks are ready for action, and we’re getting a taste of knockout season in the Champions League.

Letter Rip!

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NHL

4 Nations, 7 Games, 1 Champion

NHL Drops the Puck on the 4 Nations Face-Off Tonight

Hockey fans, rejoice! The NHL has taken a back seat to our playoff football and NBA trade coverage over the past few weeks, but that’s about to change. The NHL’s 4 Nations Face-Off starts tonight with the first of seven games in a global display of hockey’s best. The tournament features four teams — USA, Canada, Finland and Sweden — and it serves as a replacement for the NHL’s All-Star Weekend.

Much like the NBA, the NHL All-Star Game had been reduced to a non-competitive, diluted free-skate. Now, national pride, a new trophy and some prize money will hopefully inject some fire into the All-Star festivities. It’s seven games over eight days split between Montreal and Boston, and it starts tonight with Canada vs. Sweden (8:00 pm ET, TNT). Let’s do that hockey!

See the Rosters

USA (Captain: Auston Matthews)

Canada (Captain: Sidney Crosby)

Finland (Captain: Aleksander Barkov)

Sweden (Captain: Victor Hedman)

NHL All-Star Break Check-In

Division Standings (Leaders)

Atlantic: Panthers (71 pts)

Metro: Capitals (80 pts)

Central: Jets (81 pts)

Pacific: Oilers / Golden Knights (72 pts)

Individual Stats (Leaders)

Goals: L. Draisaitl, EDM (40 Goals)

Assists: N. MacKinnon, COL (66 Assists)

Goalie: C. Hellebuyck, WPG (2.06 GAA, .925 SV%)

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CHAMPIONS LEAGUE

Knockout Futbol is Here!

Real Madrid Rally Past Man. City (3-2) on Jude Bellingham’s Stoppage-Time Winner to Kickstart Champions League KOs

It’s elimination time in the Champions League! Leg 1 of the Knockout Playoff round started Tuesday with a must-see showdown between the holders from Real Madrid and the always-formidable Manchester City. The Premier League juggernauts took a 2-1 lead thanks to a penalty strike and a brace from Erling Haaland (80’), but Brahim Diaz canceled it out six minutes later before some late drama. Vinicius Jr. chipped the keeper and set up Jude Bellingham for a tap-in winner (90+2’) to silence the Etihad. We’ll have four more matches today before next week’s second legs.

Champions League Highlights

Real Madrid def. Man. City (3-2)

Haaland’s Brace Shattered by 2 Late Goals

PSG def. Brest (3-0)

Ousmane Dembele Scores Brace

Dortmund def. Sporting (3-0)

German Side Notch 3 Goals in Final 30 Min.

Juventus def. PSV (2-1)

American Weston McKennie Scores for Juve

4 More Matches Today (Must-Watch List)

The Champions League Bracket

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NFL

One Eagle Flies Back to NOLA

Saints Officially Hire Eagles OC Kellen Moore as Next Head Coach

The NFL’s worst kept secret is finally out. Eagles OC Kellen Moore will become the Saints next head coach. The move was expected for the last two weeks while Philly prepared for the Super Bowl, but it’s now official. Moore helped the Eagles win their second title on Sunday night after unlocking one of the most dynamic and talented offenses in the NFL. He’s long been revered as a great play-caller with an incredible feel for the game flow, but this will be his first stint as a head coach. He’ll have to quickly figure out if QB Derek Carr and the Saints’ offensive weapons are worth the price tag.

Unfortunately, the Saints roster is an accounting nightmare with the worst-ranked salary cap among all 32 NFL teams, and it’s not close. New Orleans is $51M over the cap. The 31st team on the list (Browns, $27M) has a $24 million head start.

Coordinator-Go-Round

The Eagles have a problem. QB Jalen Hurts has went to the playoffs every year he’s been a starter (7) at Alabama, Oklahoma, and Philadelphia, and he’s yet to have the same play-caller in his ear for back-to-back seasons. The Eagles have now burned through three OCs in three straight years, watching two leave to become head coaches — Shane Steichen (Colts) and Kellen Moore (Eagles) — and firing another — Brian Johnson — after a late-season collapse.

CBS Sports: Kellen Moore’s Meteoric Rise From Player to Head Coach in Just Over a Decade

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HIGHLIGHTS

Basketball Scoreboard

NBA

Knicks def. Pacers (128-115)

Karl-Anthony Towns Dazzles With 40-Pt Night

Grizzlies def. Suns (119-112)

Kevin Durant Reaches 30K Points in Loss

Pistons def. Bulls (132-92)

Detroit Led by 42 at Halftime (71-29)

Raptors def. 76ers (106-103)