The third Players Championship of the 2025 season was played out Monday in Rosmalen. The final victory went to Chris Dobey, who won 8-4 in the final. 'Hollywood' thus continues to prove himself as the most consistent Pro Tour player in the whole of the PDC.
Dobey got off to an excellent start to the new year, after all, last week he also reached the final at the second Players Championship of 2025. Notably, when we look at it over the past 12 months, it is already the 7th Pro Tour final for Dobey, something no one player has managed to improve upon.
Stephen Bunting reached the final of a Players Championship six times in the past 12 months, notably all six of which he ended up losing. 'The Bullet' did win the Bahrain Darts Masters earlier this year though, and also reached the final at the Dutch Darts Masters, both World Series of Darts tournaments.
Sharing third place, with both having four finals at a Players Championship in the past 12 months, are Josh Rock and Ryan Searle.
Behind them we find four players with three finals each: Gary Anderson, Dave Chisnall, Luke Littler and Wesley Plaisier. It should be noted that the latter made all those finals when he did not have a PDC Tour Card, something he has since managed to capture.
Players Champioship Finals in the last 12 months
— TheRedBit (@TheRedBit180) February 17, 2025
7 Chris Dobey
6 Stephen Bunting
4 NI Josh Rock
4 Ryan Searle
3 Gary Anderson
3 Dave Chisnall
3 Luke Littler
3 Wesley Plaisier
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Among multiple big moves this offseason, the New York Giants decided to sign 10-time Pro Bowler and Super Bowl champion Russell Wilson to be their starting QB in 2025. Although Wilson has undoubtedly taken a step back over the past couple of years, for the Giants, this looks like a significant upgrade compared to what they endured at quarterback for most of last season. In addition to his on-field play, Wilson's successful career lends a status that seems like a perfect fit for the New York market. It didn't take long for the Giants to put that status to work, either, with Wilson taking part in a free agent WR's visit with the team earlier this offseason. Russell Wilson joined in on WR Gabe Davis' free agent visit with the Giants Former Buffalo Bills and Jacksonville Jaguars WR Gabe Davis had a free agency visit with the Giants earlier this offseason, back in May. His experience playing under now Giants head coach Brian Daboll, when he was his offensive coordinator with the Bills, led many to believe that this pairing could make a lot of sense for both sides. Months have gone by, and many are still wondering if the Giant will choose to sign the deep threat WR. Davis recently appeared on the "Up and Adams" show hosted by Kay Adams. He spoke about his visit with the Giants and how it was pretty awesome to have dinner with Wilson, along with other team personnel. Davis shared that he believes Wilson is "a legend" and that they had "a good dinner, a good night for sure." Adams then brought up how much she liked the idea of Wilson and Davis connecting on a deep ball, which led Davis to share his thoughts on the pairing, "Yeah, that's me and Russ' game for sure, a deep ball threat, and Russ knows how to sling it downfield. It's something I've looked into for sure."
Joe Milton III is experiencing training camp with his second NFL team in as many seasons, and the young quarterback says he has already noticed some significant differences. Milton was traded from the New England Patriots to the Dallas Cowboys this offseason in a somewhat surprising move. At practice on Thursday, the former Tennessee quarterback told reporters he has been surprised by how much mentoring he has received from Dak Prescott. Milton then seemed to take a swipe at his former team. "Dak is a great leader. … All respect to him. He literally goes out of his way to help me," Milton said. "I’ve been in another building. I know how that goes. It’s just very different over here.” Milton played behind fellow rookie Drake Maye in New England last season. He could not have expected the No. 3 overall pick to mentor him, so it is possible he was taking a shot at Jacoby Brissett, who was also on the Patriots' roster last year. Either way, it seems clear that Milton is having a better time in Dallas than he did last year. Milton gave a funnier reason for being happy about his trade to the Cowboys earlier this offseason.
On Thursday, wrestling icon Terry "Hulk Hogan" Bollea died at the age of 71. "WWE is saddened to learn WWE Hall of Famer Hulk Hogan has passed away," the company said in a statement. "One of pop culture’s most recognizable figures, Hogan helped WWE achieve global recognition in the 1980s... WWE extends its condolences to Hogan’s family, friends, and fans." Hogan was the first true superstar to emerge in the wrestling industry, capturing a casual audience worldwide and bringing new eyes to the sport. He was an unbelievable draw, both as a baby face and as a heel. From his time as an All-American hero to leading the New World Order and teaming with Randy Savage as part of the "Mega Powers," he has been a staple of the scene for decades. Who can forget his WrestleMania III moment, where he defied the laws of physics to body-slam a 520-pound Andre the Giant? Or, more recently, his match with Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson at WrestleMania 18? His last appearance on WWE RAW on Jan. 6 saw him booed throughout, highlighting the rocky legacy Hogan leaves behind. Hogan's universal popularity has plummeted in recent years, primarily due to a racism scandal that led to his removal from the Wrestling Hall of Fame, only to be reinstated in 2018. Nevertheless, the damage had been done. Hogan's outdated and unwelcome outlook on specific aspects of life derailed the final stanza of a legendary career. Still, there's no denying that without Hogan, the wrestling we know and love today wouldn't exist. There wouldn't be WWE on the world's largest streaming platform, or All Elite Wrestling, which is developing into one of the most successful challenger brands. Instead, there would be smaller, more localized promotions, all competing for a sliver of television time. Hogan popularized the sport by bridging the gap between the wrestling ring and Hollywood. During his time in the spotlight, Hogan appeared in movies such as "Rocky III," "No Holds Barred" and "Suburban Commando," all of which helped bring his larger-than-life persona to a new audience. It's no surprise, then, that The Rock, John Cena and Dave Bautista have all made similar jumps in recent years. Hogan leaves behind an everlasting imprint on the wrestling world. Unfortunately, it comes with multiple asterisks; however, that doesn't change what he achieved as the first global wrestling star.
The Hurricanes announced Thursday night that they’ve signed winger Jackson Blake to an eight-year, $45M extension that will kick in for the 2026-27. While that would normally mean an average annual value and cap hit of $5.625M, the actual cap hit of the contract will fall in the $5.1M range due to deferred compensation, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports. The contract buys out the extent of Blake’s RFA eligibility and will make him a UFA following the 2033-34 season. Blake’s stock has been on the rise since immediately after Carolina selected him in the fourth round in 2021. He was a USHL All-Star in his post-draft season with the Chicago Steel before making the jump to NCAA hockey with North Dakota, where he totaled 102 points in 79 games in two seasons — earning a Hobey Baker finalist nod in his sophomore year. He signed his entry-level contract with the Hurricanes in April 2024 and joined them for the brief remainder of the regular season. In his first full pro season, Blake hit the ground running. He made the Canes out of camp and had five points through his first nine games despite seeing less than 12 minutes of ice time per night. That offense didn’t quite hold up the rest of the way, though. While he ended up seeing significant deployment alongside Sebastian Aho at even strength, he ended up finishing the year with a 17-17–34 scoring line in 80 games, finishing ninth on the team in scoring and ninth in Calder Trophy voting as the league’s Rookie of the Year. That’s fine production, especially considering he averaged under 14 minutes per game on the year. He’ll need to build on it to justify that cap hit, though, especially with so much risk attached to a max-term deal. The good news is that Blake has another year left on his entry-level contract to continue his development before he’ll need to start justifying that cap hit. The son of former NHLer Jason Blake turns 22 next month, yet with this deal, he’s guaranteed to surpass his dad’s career earnings. The Hurricanes have historically opted to sign their young players for as long and as early as possible, a trend that continues here. Sometimes, it’s paid off — their eight-year, $59.4M commitment to Seth Jarvis last offseason looks like a steal after he put up a repeat 67-point performance in 2024-25. There’s also the glaring example of where that strategy has failed regarding center Jesperi Kotkaniemi, whose $4.82M cap hit looks more stomachable now with a rising ceiling but is still well above his market value four years into the deal. The jury is still out on newly acquired Logan Stankoven, who they inked to an eight-year, $48M extension at the beginning of the month. Blake’s deal will be one of the last of its kind. It contains two elements — deferred compensation and an eight-year term — that will be outlawed when the new CBA Memorandum of Understanding takes effect on Sep. 15, 2026. If he waited until reaching RFA status next summer to sign, a lengthy negotiation could have lost him that eighth year if the two sides didn’t come to terms until the beginning of training camp. With the salary cap’s upper limit projected to reach $104M in 2026-27, the Hurricanes have around $16M in projected space with Blake’s and Stankoven’s deals taken care of. While they’re projected to be Carolina’s 11th- and 12th-highest-paid forwards on their opening night roster this season, they’ll be their fifth- and sixth-highest-paid forwards in 2026-27.
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