#injuries

#injuries

Not many teams like coming to Fratton Park and we've got to put them under pressure early on,

"He's a significant challenge," Capitals Coach Spencer Carbery said. "He's having a phenomenal season. ... He changes his shot angle as good as anybody in the world. When he gets in tight spaces and you think you've got him stick on puck, he's able to just move it six inches more to get a real clean look off when he gets into that dangerous scoring area. And frankly, that's a little bit larger for him than it is for most players."

Despite Xabi Alonso's side suffering another injury crisis defensively, the newspaper reports president Florentino Perez is not intending to sanction a major acquisition this month. The news will be a big disappointment for the club's supporters, who have had to watch as Madrid have struggled through to this stage of the season, churning out a series of average performances. They remain four points behind La Liga leaders Barcelona despite the weekend win over Real Betis.

A few torn ACLs later, those plans are in disarray. The Chiefs aren't in the bracket at all. The Packers are here, but they're walking wounded as a 7-seed. So this year, because my preseason pick is officially impossible, I'm freeing myself to make a new Super Bowl prediction. The chance of me picking all 13 games correctly is zero point zero percent, but maybe we can learn something along the way.

SANTA CLARA Linebacker Eric Kendricks will be new to the 49ers' starting lineup come Sunday's wild-card playoff game at Philadelphia. The footsteps he follows are not new to him. There's a standard that's upheld in this room, Kendricks said Wednesday. This organization has always had good linebackers, as far as I'm concerned, so I don't plan on it being any different. That history includes the surnames Hazeltine, Wilcox, Turner, Norton, Woodall, Willis, Bowman, Warner, Greenlaw and many more.

LAKE FOREST, Ill. -- Bears nickel cornerback Kyler Gordon, who was limited in his first practice Wednesday since going on injured reserve for a second time this season, is being factored into the gameplan for Saturday's wild-card game against the Packers. Gordon was designated to return from his second injured reserve stint of the season on Monday after missing Chicago's last four games with a groin injury.

The Blaugrana, who won the title last season by beating Real Madrid handsomely, will be eager to retain the trophy. For that to happen, they must first deal with Athletic Club tonight to secure a place in Sunday's final. Barcelona go into the game on the back of a strong run of results, racking up eight wins in a row in all competitions, most recently beating local rivals Espanyol 2-0 this past weekend.

Santos is my place, I'm at home,

The NHL Awards races this season have been anything but predictable, given some of the chaotic variables. Florida Panthers star Aleksander Barkov won the past two Selke Trophies as the NHL's best defensive forward. He has yet to play a game this season after a preseason injury required knee surgery. Winnipeg Jets goalie Connor Hellebuyck has won the past two Vezina Trophies as the NHL's top netminder, as well as the Hart Trophy as league MVP last season.

Manchester City are considering a move for Crystal Palace's Marc Guehi, with the south London club expected to demand around 40m for the defender who is out of contract in the close season. Palace's fee for their captain is 5m more than the price offered to Liverpool when the Merseyside club came close to signing him last summer. This reflects the disruption to Palace's season if Guehi does depart and their need to replace the 25-year-old.

Jake McCabe is probably a week with a lower-body injury. It could be sooner, but I would guess a week. Chris Tanev is a possible surgery (situation). This last injury is totally different, so that is the surgery part. He is going to get looked at this week. Anthony Stolarz is skating and getting better. Right now, he is still (indefinite). He hasn't even been in a practice with us. He is just (skating) on his own.

Herro missed his 13th consecutive game for the Heat during Sunday's win over the New Orleans Pelicans, despite being upgraded to available before the start of the game. The team listed him as "available as part of his ramp-up but is not expected to play." After already missing the first 17 games recovering from offseason ankle surgery, it didn't take long for Herro to almost instantly get sidelined with yet another injury after he returned. Now he has been dealing with a toe injury, and the way that he and the Heat have handled it has been odd.

The Eastern Conference-leading Detroit Pistons will be without starters Jalen Duren and Tobias Harris for at least the next few games, the team announced Saturday. Duren, who has a left ankle strain, and Harris, who has a left hip strain, won't travel to Cleveland for Sunday's game against the Cavaliers. Duren will be reevaluated in one week; Harris will be reevaluated in two weeks.