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Alexandar Georgiev Out with Upper-Body Injury
Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images

The Colorado Avalanche confirmed Friday that goaltender Alexandar Georgiev is out with an upper-body injury and recalled Trent Miner from the Colorado Eagles. Miner will back up Justus Annunen against the Washinton Capitals.

Georgiev was not on the ice for morning skate but was seen outside the locker room afterward.

The 28-year-old netminder won his last three starts and has improved his game since the start of the season. He had three losses in his first four starts and he only played 21:56 against the Columbus Blue Jackets in the team’s home opener before being pulled after letting in three goals on nine shots.

Avalanche Game 18 vs Washington Capitals: Lines, Notes & How to Watch

“I didn’t have any doubt that he could get there. He just wanted to get there as soon as possible,” head coach Jared Bednar said about Georgiev.

Georgiev is 4-5 in 10 starts with a goals-against average of 3.56 and a save percentage of .863 but his numbers do not reflect his play in his last four starts.

“He’s been great for us. We knew he’d bounce back in this type of way. I think the goaltending we’ve got from Juice (Justus Annunen), and then the last little stretch here has been great,” Logan O’Connor said. “They’re giving us an opportunity to win every single night. So it’s awesome to see the resilience from both those guys.”

This article first appeared on Colorado Hockey Now and was syndicated with permission.

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NHL

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Commanders reportedly hesitant about one issue with Terry McLaurin deal
NFL

Commanders reportedly hesitant about one issue with Terry McLaurin deal

The 2024 offseason expanded the $30M-per-year wide receiver club to six members. D.K. Metcalf, Ja’Marr Chase and Garrett Wilson have taken it to nine this year. Terry McLaurin is undoubtedly pushing to bump that number to 10, after seeing 2019 Day 2 classmates Metcalf and A.J. Brown land among that contingent. McLaurin reported to training camp Sunday and landed on the active/PUP list. As our Rory Parks explained, skepticism exists about how injured the Commanders’ top wide receiver really is. An ankle injury has keyed the PUP stay, but it can be safely assumed McLaurin would be ready to practice if an extension comes to pass. Nevertheless, the Commanders have been surprised by the difficulty of these talks. Using an injury to avoid practicing while negotiating — developments the Jonathan Taylor and Micah Parsons sagas brought — represents a third tactic, joining the holdout and the increasingly utilized hold-in amid extension talks. McLaurin shifted from a holdout to the injury route; no matter how he is accomplishing not practicing, the seventh-year veteran is aiming to land a lucrative third contract. His age provides a complication for Washington. McLaurin is going into an age-30 season, separating him from Brown and Metcalf. Both Ole Miss products were drafted just before McLaurin, a 2019 third-round pick, but they are each two years younger. This strengthened their cases for big-ticket third contracts. McLaurin went first to ignite the second-tier boom on the receiver market in 2022, agreeing to a three-year, $69.6M extension. That shaped the Metcalf and Deebo Samuel extensions, both of which coming in higher than McLaurin’s despite the latter’s consistency with suboptimal quarterback situations. McLaurin’s AAV has dropped to 17th at wide receiver. The Commanders are prepared to extend their top wideout, but Sportskeeda.com’s Tony Pauline indicates the "holdup" is regarding the $30M-AAV number. Some around the league point to the team not wanting to go into that neighborhood for McLaurin, despite his five 1,000-yard seasons. Courtland Sutton and McLaurin are nearly the same age, and the Broncos’ top target signed a four-year, $92M extension. That matches where the Titans went for Calvin Ridley (now 30) in 2024. McLaurin, though, has a better resume than both and should be aiming higher. The Commanders have a Jayden Daniels rookie contract to structure another McLaurin extension around as well. Adam Peters was around for the 49ers’ 2022 Samuel extension but not Brandon Aiyuk‘s $30M-per-year deal. (The Samuel extension also did not work out for the 49ers, who proceeded with a salary dump of sorts by trading him to the Commanders.) The second-year GM taking a hardline stance with McLaurin would be an interesting route given the WR’s importance to a sudden contender. Peters confirmed talks are ongoing, with that comment coming after McLaurin expressed frustration about the negotiations. A potential gap between the pack of 20-somethings (and Tyreek Hill) north of $30M AAV and the Tee Higgins–Jaylen Waddle–D.J. Moore tier could be relevant here, and it will be interesting to see if McLaurin settles for something just south of that $30MM benchmark. Guarantees and contract structure, of course, will be important to determining the value as well. A short-term extension should be reached soon, per Pauline, but if the Commanders hold the line at or around $30M, the McLaurin matter could drag on for a while longer.

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NFL

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Lakers coach JJ Redick issues challenge to Bronny James
NBA

Lakers coach JJ Redick issues challenge to Bronny James

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