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The New York Rangers have recalled defenseman Matthew Robertson from their AHL affiliate, the Hartford Wolf Pack.
With regular second-pairing left-shot defenseman K’Andre Miller set to miss Tuesday night's game against the Toronto Maple Leafs due to personal reasons, the Rangers are down a defenseman for Tuesday night’s game.
Veteran Erik Gustafsson appears poised to take Miller’s spot next to captain Jacob Trouba, and then the decision for who will enter the lineup will come down to either Zac Jones or Robertson.
For an important game against a strong Maple Leafs team, one would assume that Jones, an intelligent player with nearly 50 games of NHL experience, would be the preferred option.
But seeing as Miller’s absence means the Rangers have a second-unit penalty killer to replace, Robertson could very well be called upon to make his NHL debut. Standing six-foot-three, 211 pounds, Robertson offers a more defensive style and the kind of size and physicality Jones, who is 5-foot-10, does not provide.
Should he end up dressed for Tuesday’s game, Robertson would get the chance to make his NHL debut in the middle of his third season playing professional hockey.
The 22-year-old was a 2019 second-round pick, selected out of the WHL’s Edmonton Oil Kings. Robertson had a strong junior career. He skated in over 200 WHL games, won gold at the 2018 Hlinka Gretzky Cup, and was once named to the WHL’s Second All-Star Team. While Edmonton only got the chance to reach the playoffs once during Robertson’s time there, he played a crucial role on a team that made a run to the WHL’s Conference Finals.
In Hartford, Robertson has steadily risen in importance. While he isn’t much of an offensive producer, Robertson scored a career-high 23 points in 57 games last year. This season, he’s frequently spent time alongside former OHL star Mac Hollowell, and the defensive safety he provides to that pairing has helped Hollowell pile up points, as he has posted 22 in just 18 games.
While Robertson may only be in the NHL on a short-term basis due to the news regarding Miller, and he may end up just in the press box as a healthy scratch Tuesday night, it would be a surprise if Robertson doesn’t get the chance to make his NHL debut at some point down the line.
More must-reads:
- Filip Chytil’s Injury Has Galvanized Rangers’ 4th Line
- Rangers’ K’Andre Miller to miss tonight’s game against Maple Leafs due to personal reasons
- The 'NHL all-time goal leaders' quiz
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Bryce Pickford: the Habs prospect has already sent the Red Wings packing
At the last draft, the Canadiens selected defenseman Bryce Pickford 81st overall. We’re talking about a defenseman who was actually in his second year of eligibility for the NHL draft. He was unclaimed in 2024. And clearly, that motivated the kid, who really improved during the 2024-25 season. That’s why the Habs gave him a chance in the third round… but he might never have made it. Because following the 2024 draft, Pickford was invited by the Red Wings to their development camp. And that clearly didn’t sit well with Pickford, as he explained to Nicolas Cloutier(TVA Sports). He responded to the invitation by saying he wasn’t going to show up, because if the Red Wings liked him that much, they should have drafted him. Nothing less. It was obviously a great source of motivation for Pickford, who practiced hard in the months that followed. And what we understand is that the young man is clearly not one to shy away from a challenge. And in a market like Montreal, that’s a great quality to have. Pickford may not be the club’s best prospect, but we’re still talking about a defender who has 11 goals and 21 points in 19 games this season. And above all, we’re talking about a right-handed defenseman, a position where the Habs don’t have a ton of depth. That means he has the potential to be a long-term factor… and if he does end up playing for the Habs, the club can count itself lucky to have seen him have enough guts to turn down an offer from a division rival, hehe. Overtime – Happy listening. – Alex Tuch: a new contract at $10.6 million a year? – Great read. – News from the LPHF. – Notice to interested parties.
Three teams getting too much credit from College Football Playoff committee
The College Football Playoff committee released its latest set of rankings on Tuesday night without too many surprises. Oklahoma was the biggest mover, going up to No. 8 after a road win over Alabama, which dropped to No. 10. The Crimson Tide are effectively holding onto the last playoff spot. Miami, the top-ranked ACC team, is projected to get that league's spot for now, while Tulane would get the last automatic berth, going to the fifth-highest-ranked conference champion. That leaves BYU and Utah on the outside looking in. Vanderbilt, USC, Georgia Tech and Michigan are some other teams looming. USC can make a statement this weekend, with a road win over Oregon. The Ducks are ranked seventh, while USC is 15th. For the Trojans, a win this week likely catapults them into the top 10. It could also expose a top-10 team that doesn't have the resume of a top-10 team. Three teams are being overvalued by the College Football Playoff committee, and the list starts with Oregon. Oregon (No. 7) The Ducks have beaten up on some weak opponents, but their best wins this season were an ugly victory at Iowa and a 20-point road win over Northwestern. They don't have a single win over a currently ranked team. Alabama has beaten two teams in the top 14 and four in the top 25. Oregon passes the eye test. But it feels like the Ducks are getting too much credit for a win at Penn State that's not all that impressive, and a close home loss to Indiana, something the Ducks share with Iowa. Oregon has looked great at times. It also looked unimpressive in a 21-7 win over 3-7 Wisconsin. Saturday's game will answer some questions, yet the Ducks are being overvalued by the committee. Tennessee (No. 20) Strength of schedule should matter, but not when the College Football Playoff committee is artificially pumping up the schedule strength of one conference in particular: the SEC. The five teams in the top 10 are worthy. It's hard to argue against them. But outside of that, the SEC feels propped up. Tennessee, for instance, hasn't beaten a single team with a winning record this season. Losing to Georgia in overtime and to Oklahoma by single digits isn't a good enough reason to be ranked. Missouri (No. 22) Like Tennessee, the best achievement of the Missouri Tigers has been losing to ranked teams. SMU, from the ACC, has a similar record. It has three losses to teams with winning records, plus a win over No. 13 Miami, a better win than Tennessee or Missouri, yet the Mustangs didn't crack the top 25. No. 23 Houston is 8-2. The Cougars lost to fifth-ranked Texas Tech earlier in the season, plus to West Virginia. They also beat 25th-ranked Arizona State on the road, yet are ranked behind two teams that haven't beaten a single team with a winning record. It feels like the College Football Playoff committee continues to favor the SEC, but it's about more than that. Too much is being based on the eye test. That's why Oregon is ranked where it's at and some SEC teams, too. The resume should matter above everything. Performance on the field should be the determining factor, but once again, that doesn't appear to be the case.
Texas HC Steve Sarkisian gives bold claim on job rumors
Texas Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian has been a popular name in both the NFL and college football coaching cycles. It makes sense, too. He's brought Texas back to being competitive and in the championship hunt, but he also has a wealth of great experience as an assistant in both college and the NFL. He's about as well-rounded a candidate as you'll find, so of course, programs like the Florida Gators, LSU Tigers or even the New York Giants may be interested to see if he's interested. The thing is, though, he's not. Or, at the very least, that's what he's telling the media. He's all-in with the Longhorns, according to comments he made on a recent SEC teleconference call. “I’d like to comment something before I get into our team that has been bothering me now over the past few weeks. That is people reporting that are insinuating that there’s a possibility I could leave the University of Texas, and that is absolutely false and untrue," Sarkisian said (h/t On3). "I’m not going anywhere. Never do I do this because I never want to be a distraction, so I never address these things. At this point, I feel like this is important that I do this because it’s important for our team. It’s important for our university." Steve Sarkisian has deep roots in Austin and is all-in with Texas As if that weren't clear enough, Sarkisian said that he has not had any discussions with anybody about coaching elsewhere. He even went as far as to say that even his agent hasn't spoken to anyone. Sometimes coaches can say publicly that they aren't talking about any opportunities while, in the meantime, their agents are working backchannels and putting something together. He could be lying, of course, because college football history is full of head coaches saying one thing and doing another. A full-throated statement like this seems to be a pretty clear indication that Sarkisian is serious about what he's saying, though. Heck, he went as far as calling Austin home, which is a pretty big deal for a coach to say. Those guys aren't used to staying in one place for too long. With that said, Sarkisian does have two kids actually enrolled at Texas, one on the football team. He has a third kid he wants to go to Texas in the near future. He also just had a baby. Sarkisian has roots in Austin. He also has high aspirations for the Longhorns. “We came here to win championships," he said. "We’ve built a damn good football program over the five years that we’ve been here. We’ve been to two College Football Playoffs. We won a Big 12 Championship. We went to the SEC Championship game in Year 1. We’ve had 23 players drafted the last two years, which is more than any other school in the country and our team GPA is at an all-time high. “Can we please stop putting things out there that you have absolutely zero evidence on? Can we please stop retweeting and putting it back out there as if it’s true? As if it’s the gospel? It is not true."
One coach makes sense for LSU if Lane Kiffin doesn't flip to Tigers
The LSU Tigers are serious about their pursuit of current Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin. It makes sense, too. Sure, Kiffin has had some ups and downs (to put it lightly) as a college football coach, but he's been great at Ole Miss since 2020, and he currently has the Rebels at 10-1 and in the running to make a huge run through the College Football Playoff. He's comfortable with SEC football, and he's known as a great recruiter. Those are all things that would make Kiffin a big-time hire for the Tigers as they look to replace Brian Kelly, but they're not the only program in the running. Ole Miss would, obviously, like Kiffin to stay, and the Florida Gators are turning on the full-court press for him as well. LSU would be smart to have options 1A and 1B if Kiffin doesn't end up coming to Baton Rouge, and according to Scott Rabalais of NOLA.com, the Tigers do have two names in mind. "If not Kiffin — and obviously he could go any number of ways — then who for LSU? Two of the names to consider right now appear to be Missouri coach Eli Drinkwitz and Tulane coach Jon Sumrall," Rabalais reported earlier in the week. Tulane head coach Jon Sumrall could be a perfect fit for LSU Tigers Eli Drinkwitz of Missouri would be a great option. He's gone 44-27 in six seasons with the Tigers from Columbia, Missouri. The issue with him is somewhat similar to what plagued Kelly at LSU, though, and it's something that led to Penn State firing James Franklin — now the head coach at Virginia Tech. Drinkwitz has kept Mizzou very competitive in the SEC, but he has struggled in big spots. He is 7-14 against ranked teams. LSU could get that kind of production, or lack thereof, from Kelly, which then makes Jon Sumrall from Tulane the next option to look at. Frankly, he may be the best one of the bunch for LSU, and even better of a fit than Kiffin. One of the big problems with Kelly at LSU is that he never fit into the Louisiana culture. A Massachusetts native, he was always seen as an outsider and never tried to change that. Sumrall wasn't born in Louisiana, but he does hail from Texarkana, Texas, which is roughly five hours north of Baton Rouge. He was a linebacker at Kentucky from 2002 to 2004, so he understands SEC football, but most importantly for LSU, he understands life in Louisiana as the head coach at Tulane. He's now in his second season with the Green Wave, but he was also the co-defensive coordinator at Tulane from 2012 to 2014, so he has a lot of experience working and recruiting within the state. Throw in the fact that he's only 43 years old (thus, he really has no baggage as a head coach), and he has No. 24 Tulane in the hunt in the American Athletic Conference as well as in the hunt for a spot in the CFP, and there are few scenarios in which Sumrall wouldn't be a home run hire for LSU. Again, he may even be a better option than Kiffin, though it does sound like LSU wants to bark up that tree first before looking elsewhere.
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