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NHL Power Rankings: Bruins sitting pretty at No. 4 despite recent woes

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:28:06 GMT

The good news for the Bruins is there are no great teams in the 2023-24 National Hockey League.The bad news is they’re swimming in a vast sea of good teams, especially in the Eastern Conference. Could a team which makes the right moves by the trade deadline separate from the pack? You never know. We thought that’s what the B’s did last year.Anyway, here are this month’s installment of the Herald’s Power Rankings:1. New York Rangers – The Blueshirts, who own the best points percentage in the league (.750), have demonstrated they can win in a variety of styles.2. Vegas Golden Knights – The champs may not be running away with anything, but they’re still formidable.3. Vancouver Canucks – Rick Tocchet is the leading Jack Adams Award candidate and Thatcher Demko is vying for the Vezina. Weird how those two awards go hand-in-hand.4. Boston Bruins – The team’s compete level may be the highest its been all season, but they’re 1-0-3 in their las...

Wednesday’s high school roundup/scores: Jacob McLoughlin leads Sharon over Milford

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:28:06 GMT

BOYS BASKETBALLIn the Hockomock League, Jacob McLoughlin dropped 27 points with six rebounds and five assists as Sharon (5-0) won 68-56 over Milford.Aidan Flaherty scored 20 points and grabbed 16 rebounds, and Jared Cleary and Ethan Pohl registered nine points each as East Bridgewater (3-0) roared back from a halftime deficit to defeat Carver 63-53 in South Shore League action.GIRLS BASKETBALLIn nonleague play, freshman Rowan Murphy put in 21 points as Greater Lowell (1-2) cruised to a 53-15 victory over Notre Dame of Tyngsboro. … Reese Matela recorded 23 points and 12 rebounds, and Charleigh Green chipped in with eight points as St. Mary’s of Lynn (5-0) came back to defeat Springfield International 49-39.Sophomores Melanie Simmons (12 points) and Nora Simpson (10 points, four steals) guided Arlington Catholic (1-1) as a 20-point third quarter enabled the Cougars to pull away in a 50-30 win over Lowell Catholic. … Cecilia Kay collected 18 points, 15 rebounds and five blocks, and Cel...

Harvard’s President Claudine Gay faces more heat over her writing

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:28:06 GMT

Get Harvard President Claudine Gay rewrite … again.The embattled campus boss will need to make three corrections to her Ph.D. dissertation amid plagiarism allegations, according to multiple reports.The college newspaper, the Crimson, states the Harvard Corporation — the University’s highest governing body — is behind the corrections. Harvard did not respond to a Herald request for the same statement.The Crimson added that the Corporation revealed, in part: “The members … concluded that Gay’s inadequate citations, while regrettable, did not constitute research misconduct.”The Corporation has stood by GayThe Washington Free Beacon, a conservative website, reports Gay is facing more plagiarism woes — where up to 40 accusations of lifting others’ work are being made. “The document paints a picture of a pattern of misconduct more extensive than has been previously reported,” the website posted.As the Herald has reported that Harvard’s Corporation...

Justin Fields, Jaylon Johnson address their uncertain futures with the Chicago Bears — what we learned at Halas Hall

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:28:06 GMT

After Sunday’s devastating 20-17 loss to the Cleveland Browns, the Chicago Bears returned to practice Wednesday. Coach Matt Eberflus has pushed his players to reset and refocus with the Arizona Cardinals coming to town for Christmas Eve. The Bears are home favorites for Sunday’s game but will have to be sharp to get back on the winning track.As the team readies for its Week 16 test, here are five things we learned Wednesday at Halas Hall.1. Quarterback Justin Fields is aware of the amplified talk about his uncertain future.The chatter has been escalating recently — both in Chicago and across the league — as curiosity heightens for how the Bears will handle their quarterback decisions during a pivotal 2024 offseason. Fields still has two seasons remaining on his rookie contract but remains the subject of significant trade speculation with the Bears potentially in line to own the No. 1 pick for April’s draft.Will the team opt to reboot at quarterback by s...

Celtics’ Jayson Tatum misses game vs. Kings with ankle injury, return unknown

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:28:06 GMT

Celtics star Jayson Tatum missed Wednesday night’s game against the Kings due to a left ankle sprain he suffered in Tuesday’s loss to the Warriors.Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla said Tatum is day-to-day with the injury and described Tatum’s ankle as “sore” and “swollen,” but did not offer a timetable on when he might return. The C’s next play on Saturday against the Clippers.“He loves to play. I’m sure he would do anything to play,” Mazzulla told reporters pregame in Sacramento. “But it was obviously sore, obviously it was swollen. You could tell it limited him during the game. He did a good job of fighting through it, but it’s a day-to-day thing and we’ll see how it goes.”Tatum suffered the injury in the first quarter of Tuesday’s loss when he stepped on the foot of Golden State’s Brandin Podziemski. He immediately hobbled off the court and straight to the locker room, and returned for the start of the second quarter. But he was clearly not himself for the rest of the game as he finish...

Texas begins flying migrants from southern border to Chicago. The 1st plane carried over 120 people

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:28:06 GMT

By PAUL J. WEBER (Associated Press)AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Texas sent a plane with more than 120 migrants from the U.S.-Mexico border to Chicago in an escalation of Republican Gov. Greg Abbott’s busing operation that has given more than 80,000 migrants free rides to Democratic-led cities across the country since last year. The first flight, which left from El Paso and arrived Tuesday, was arranged a week after Chicago’s city council took new action over the busloads of migrants that have drawn sharp criticism from Mayor Brandon Johnson. The city has said bus operators began trying to drop off people in neighboring cities to avoid penalties that include fines, towing or impoundment.Bus operators could now face tougher penalties in Chicago for not unloading new arrivals at a designated location or failing to fill out city paperwork. Abbott spokesman Andrew Mahaleris said Wednesday that the flights were the result of Johnson “targeting migrant buses” from Tex...

Judge weighs request to stop nation’s first execution by nitrogen, in Alabama

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:28:06 GMT

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — A federal judge heard diverging arguments Wednesday about the humaneness and risks of execution by nitrogen gas as he weighs whether to let Alabama attempt the nation’s first use of the method.Attorneys for Kenneth Eugene Smith are asking a judge to block his Jan. 25 execution by nitrogen hypoxia. They argued that the method violates the constitutional ban on cruel and unusual punishment and said the mask, which is fitted seal over his nose and mouth, would interfere with his ability to pray with his spiritual adviser. Robert Grass, an attorney for Smith, told the judge the execution method “exposes Mr. Smith to the risk of superadded pain” which is not allowed under the U.S. Constitution. The state attorney general’s office urged U.S. District Judge R. Austin Huffaker Jr. to reject the request, saying the method is humane. Huffaker did not indicate when he will rule. The execution method would use the mask to replace breathable air with nitrogen,...

Toronto police report staggering rise in hate crimes against Jews, Muslims

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:28:06 GMT

Hate crimes in Toronto are occurring at an alarming rate as Toronto police release another set of staggering statistics showing Muslim and Jewish communities continue to be targeted.“This is a kind of hatred we should never see in Canada,” said Jaime Kirzener-Roberts with the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs, reacting to the 211 per cent increase in antisemitic incidents reported to police since the war between Israel and Hamas broke out in early October compared to the same time a year ago.Kirzener-Roberts says they are receiving upwards of 500 emails a day regarding public safety concerns.“Is it safe for my child to be at school, is it safe to be walking around our neighbourhood, is it safe to have a Menorah in our window,” she says of the questions being asked by the community. “Jewish kids being told they should go die in a gas chamber, kids being spit at …Jewish children being called baby killers – and we know hateful words lead to hateful deed...

Vigil held for 5-year-old migrant boy who died at Chicago shelter

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:28:06 GMT

CHICAGO (AP) — Hundreds of migrants and other people turned out Wednesday night for a vigil held for a 5-year-old migrant boy who died after becoming ill in a Chicago shelter. Jean Carlos Martinez was a resident at a warehouse retrofitted as a shelter in Chicago’s Pilsen neighborhood when he suffered a medical emergency, the city said. He was pronounced dead shortly after arriving at a hospital Sunday afternoon. Six more people living in the shelter — four children and two adults — were hospitalized this week, Chicago Fire Department spokesperson Larry Langford said.All had been living in the same shelter as Martinez, whose family arrived in Chicago on Nov. 30. The cause of death was still pending Wednesday, according to Cook County medical examiner records.“This was a preventable death. This was also a predictable death,” said social worker Britt Hodgdon, who spoke at the vigil. “People are here. They are our brothers and sisters. They deserve to be safe and cared for and living in...

Signing day: Georgia has top class after 5-star flip; Ohio State sigh of relief on No. 1 player

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 19:28:06 GMT

The early signing period in college football opened Wednesday with some five-star drama.Georgia likely locked up the top recruiting class by flipping an in-state blue-chip player away from Florida State. The consensus No. 1 recruit in the country had Ohio State’s Ryan Day literally sighing with relief, and then made the coach wait hours before officially becoming a Buckeye. Florida managed to hold on to a couple of five-stars amid a flurry of late de-commits.Meanwhile, the long and winding recruitment of Dylan Raiola ended bright and early with the highly touted quarterback signing a national letter of intent with Nebraska, the school where his father was an All-American offensive lineman.College football’s early signing period, jammed into what has become an overloaded December calendar with postseason games and players transferring, has become the signing period.“The schedule is not good. It’s chaotic,” Penn State coach James Franklin told reporters.The big schoo...