lose

UCLA senior Megan Grant continues to etch her name into NCAA record books.

Grant hit her 38th home run of the season during a Big Ten tournament title game loss to Nebraska on Saturday, breaking the NCAA Division I record set in 1995 by Arizona’s Lauren Espinoza.

As a team, UCLA pushed its NCAA record single-season team home run total to 182.

After Grant’s historic bomb in the third inning off Big Ten pitcher of the year Jordy Frahm gave UCLA a 2-0 lead, the Bruins’ (47-8) offense sputtered and Nebraska (46-6) rolled to a 7-2 victory.

UCLA will learn its NCAA tournament matchup when the the softball bracket is revealed at 4 p.m. Sunday on ESPN2. The Bruins are expected to host an NCAA Regional and Super Regional should they advance.

Grant and Oklahoma freshman Kendall Wells have hit homers at a blistering pace and are battling to close the season with the NCAA home run title. Wells has 36 home runs, two behind Grant. Her team was eliminated from the Southeastern Conference tournament Friday, but she can add to her tally when the loaded Sooners compete in the NCAA tournament.

Lakers lose to Rockets

From Broderick Turner: An hour before tip-off of Game 5 of the first-round playoff series against the Houston Rockets, the word came down that Austin Reaves was available to play for the Lakers, his wait over, his time away with a Grade 2 left oblique strain no longer an issue for him.

Reaves missed the first four games of the series against Houston and the last five regular-season games after sustaining the injury in Oklahoma
City on April 2. He checked into the game off the bench with 5 minutes and 39 seconds left in the first quarter to a standing ovation.

Reaves proceeded to give the Lakers a lift, but the Rockets received even more elevated play , their five starters scoring in double figures and their defense on point during Houston’s 99-93 win over Los Angeles on Wednesday night at Crypto.com Arena.

Even with Reaves scoring 22 points and handing out six assists and LeBron James producing 25 points and seven assists, the Lakers couldn’t close out this best-of-seven series they once had total command of just a few days ago.

The Lakers have lost the last two games and their once 3-0 lead heading to Houston with their lead down to 3-2.

“I mean, we don’t have a lot of time to dwell on it,” James said. “I mean, you can give yourself tonight, a little bit tomorrow. But … once we get on that plane and head down to Houston we got to forget about it and understand what we are going for and it’s going to be even harder.

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Lakers box score

NBA playoffs schedule

Lakers playoff schedule

First round
All times Pacific

at Lakers 107, Houston 98 (box score)
at Lakers 101, Houston 94 (box score)
Lakers 112, at Houston 108 (box score)
at Houston 115, Lakers 96 (box score)
Houston 99, at Lakers 93 (box score)
Friday: Lakers at Houston, 6:30 p.m., Prime Video
*Sunday: Houston at Lakers, TBD

*-if necessary

Dodgers lose to Marlins again

From Kevin Baxter: Wednesday was getaway day for Dodgers, the final game of a six-game homestand ahead of a weeklong trip to St. Louis and Houston. And that’s a good thing, first baseman Freddie Freeman said, because there are a number of players on the team that really could use a getaway, Freeman chief among them.

With Wednesday’s 3-2 matinee loss to the Miami Marlins, the Dodgers (20-11) have lost two in a row at home for the first time this season. In those two games the Dodgers scored just three runs, went four for 18 with men in scoring position and left 16 runners on base.

And the final outs Wednesday came when Freeman, batting with the bases loaded and one out, grounded into a bizarre, unassisted double play with Marlins second baseman Xavier Edwards fielding the ball, tagging Shohei Ohtani as he ran him back to first, then dragging his foot across the bag to retire Freeman.

“I hit it right at the second baseman. He tagged Ohtani and tagged first,” Freeman offered in an accurate, if hardly revelatory explanation.

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Dodgers box score

MLB standings

Angels lose to White Sox again

Rookie Sam Antonacci hit a tying triple with two outs in the ninth inning and Colson Montgomery had a winning single in the 10th, lifting the Chicago White Sox to a 3-2 victory Wednesday for a three-game sweep that extended the Angels’ losing streak to six.

Mike Trout hit his 10th home run of the season for the Angels, who have lost 10 of 11 and dropped to 12-20. Additionally, Angels starter Yusei Kikuchi left after two innings with left shoulder tightness.

Kikuchi gave up no runs on two hits and a walk with one strikeout before exiting. His average fastball velocity dropped from 94.9 mph in the first inning to 92.8 mph in the second.

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Angels box score

MLB standings

Who is the Kentucky Derby favorite?

From Jay Posner: This year’s Kentucky Derby field does not appear to have a true standout. But it could have a star.

If that sounds illogical, trainer Chad Brown, who will start Emerging Market in a bid to win his first Derby, can explain.

“There’s clearly a couple horses that are deserving favorites in the race, but there’s by no means an American Pharoah in here, at least up to this point going into the race,” Brown said, referencing the 2015 Triple Crown champion. “Now, you know, whoever wins the race and goes on, maybe one emerges and turns into one of the best 3-year-olds in the last few years.”

That’s what happened last year, when Sovereignty, the third betting choice in the race, progressed from a Derby win to victories in the Belmont and Travers and was voted Eclipse Award for Horse of the Year.

This year’s field is so deep, Brown said, that an argument could be made “for maybe half the horses in the field, if they ran their very, very best race and had a good trip, could win this race.”

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Sparks to retire a number

From Marisa Ingemi: The Sparks will retire former player DeLisha Milton-Jones’ No. 8 jersey on July 28 when the team hosts the New York Liberty as a part of the WNBA’s 30th anniversary celebration.

A three-time All-Star, Milton-Jones played 11 years for the Sparks, helping lead them to back-to-back titles in 2001 and 2002.

“It’s like one of those moments where it’s Christmas, and you’re anticipating getting a gift and when the day finally is here, that feeling you can’t even describe is rather euphoric and nostalgic all at the same time, and it brings a peace about you in a way that you can’t explain,” Milton-Jones said. “Because you put so much time, energy and effort into everything that you did in that moment in your life, and now to be rewarded in this manner is just pretty big.”

Milton-Jones will be the fourth Sparks player to have her number retired after Lisa Leslie (No. 9), Penny Toler (No. 11) and Candace Parker (No. 3).

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NCAA men’s tournament could expand

From Steve Henson: Ever-growing power conferences are the driving force behind an impending expansion of the NCAA men’s and women’s basketball tournaments, which ESPN reported could be formalized within weeks and begin next season.

The field would grow from 68 teams to 76 that would include eight additional at-large teams in each tournament. The current First Four — eight teams playing four games — would expand to 12 games played by 24 teams at two sites on the first Tuesday and Wednesday of the tournament. The traditional 64-team bracket would begin Thursday as usual.

Mid-majors likely are tempering any celebration. The change might not mean more invitations to the Big Dance for underdogs because the NCAA and its media partners favor large, established schools with large, established fan bases for viewership and revenue.

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Ducks playoffs schedule

All times Pacific

at Edmonton 4, Ducks 3 (summary)
Ducks 6, at Edmonton 4 (summary)
at Ducks 7, Edmonton 4 (summary)
at Ducks 4, Edmonton 3 (OT) (summary)
at Edmonton 4, Ducks 1 (summary)
Thursday: Edmonton at Ducks, 7 p.m., TNT, truTV, HBO Max, KCOP-13
*Saturday: Ducks at Edmonton, TBD

*-if necessary

This day in sports history

1961 — LPGA Titleholders Championship Women’s Golf, Augusta CC: Mickey Wright wins her 5th major title by 1 stroke from Patty Berg & Louise Suggs.

1962 — LPGA Titleholders Championship Women’s Golf, Augusta CC: Mickey Wright wins her 8th major title in a playoff with Ruth Jessen.

1971 — The Milwaukee Bucks become the second team to register a four-game sweep in the NBA championship, beating the Baltimore Bullets 118-106.

1975 — Larry O’Brien is named the NBA’s third commissioner, following J. Walter Kennedy (1963-75) and Maurice Podoloff (1946-63). O’Brien holds the position until 1984.

1976 — Muhammad Ali wins a unanimous 15-round decision over Jimmy Young in Landover, Md., to retain his world heavyweight title.

1985 — NFL Draft: Virginia Tech defensive end Bruce Smith first pick by Buffalo Bills.

1987 — NY Islander Mike Bossy plays his final game.

1992 — The Red Wings and Canucks become the ninth and 10th teams in NHL history to rebound from 3-1 deficits to win playoff series. Detroit beats the Minnesota North Stars 5-2 in the Norris Division, while Vancouver defeats the Winnipeg Jets 5-0 in the Smythe Division.

1993 — Top-ranked Monica Seles is stabbed during a changeover in Hamburg, Germany. Guenter Parche, 38, reaches over a courtside railing and knifes Seles in the back. She has an inch-deep slit between her shoulder blades and missed the remainder of the 1993 season.

2005 — James Toney outpoints John Ruiz to win the WBA heavyweight title in New York. Toney, a former champion at three other weights, wins his third heavyweight bout, becoming the third one-time middleweight champion to take boxing’s top crown.

2010 — Tiger Woods matches the worst nine-hole score of his PGA Tour career and winds up with a 7-over 79 to miss the cut at the Quail Hollow Championship. Woods finishes at 9-over 153, the highest 36-hole total of his career. It’s the sixth time in his 14-year career he misses a cut.

2012 — Manchester City defeat Manchester United 1-0 in what is claimed to be the biggest match in the English Premier League’s history.

2014 — Anze Kopitar scores the tiebreaking goal late in the second period and Jonathan Quick makes 39 saves to cap the Kings’ comeback from three games down with a 5-1 victory over the San Jose Sharks in Game 7 of the first round. This is the fourth time an NHL team won a best-of-seven series after losing the first three games.

2015 — For the first time in 51 years, the NFL draft returns to Chicago. Florida State’s Jameis Winston is selected by Tampa Bay as the first selection.

2023 — Seattle Kraken become first NHL franchise to earn its first-ever playoff series win against reigning Stanley Cup champion, eliminating the Colorado Avalanche in seven games.

Compiled by the Associated Press

This day in baseball history

1903 — The New York Highlanders won their home opener at Hilltop Park, 6-2 over Washington.

1919 — Philadelphia’s Joe Oeschger and Brooklyn’s Burleigh Grimes pitched complete games in a 9-9, 20-inning tie. Both teams scored three runs in the 19th inning. Oeschger gave up 22 hits and walked five, while Grimes allowed 15 hits and walked five.

1922 — Charlie Robertson of the Chicago White Sox pitched a 2-0 perfect game against the Detroit Tigers. Johnny Mostil, playing left field for the only time, made two outstanding catches.

1923 — The New York Yankees sign 20-year-old prospect Lou Gehrig to a contract paying him a salary of $2,000 and a bonus of $1,500.

1940 — James “Tex” Carleton of the Brooklyn Dodgers threw a 3-0 no-hitter at Cincinnati.

1944 — In the first game of a doubleheader split, New York first baseman Phil Weintraub drove in 11 runs and player-manager Mel Ott scored six runs as the Giants beat the Brooklyn Dodgers 26-8. Brooklyn won the nightcap 5-4.

1946 — Bob Feller struck out 11 New York Yankees en route to his second of three career no-hitters, a 1-0 victory at Yankee Stadium.

1952 — Ted Williams plays his final game before leaving for military duty in Korea.

1958 —Ted Williams of the Boston Red Sox became the 10th major leaguer to reach 1,000 extra-base hits in a 10-4 loss to the Kansas City Athletics at Fenway Park.

1961 — Willie Mays of the San Francisco Giants hit four home runs and drove in eight runs in a 14-4 victory over the Braves in Milwaukee. Hank Aaron hit two homers for the Braves.

1967 — Steve Barber and Stu Miller of the Baltimore Orioles combined on a no-hitter in a 2-1 loss to the Detroit Tigers in the first game of a doubleheader.

1969 — Jim Maloney of the Cincinnati Reds struck out 13 en route to a 10-0 no-hitter over the Houston Astros, the third of his career.

1986 — The Seattle Mariners strike out 16 more times in a 9-4 loss to the Boston Red Sox, to set a major league record of 36 strikeouts in two consecutive games.

1988 — New York and Cincinnati hooked up in a wild game at Riverfront Stadium, with the Mets winning 6-5 on a delayed call by first base umpire Dave Pallone. The call resulted in a $10,000 fine and 30-day suspension of Reds manager Pete Rose when Pallone accidentally poked Rose in the cheek and Rose shoved Pallone twice.

1994 — Toronto’s Joe Carter finished April with 31 RBIs to set a major league record for the month. Colorado’s Andres Galarraga finished with 30 to set a National League record.

1996 — Jeff King of the Pittsburgh Pirates becomes the third major leaguer to hit two home runs in one inning twice in his career.

2000 — Randy Johnson of the Arizona Diamondbacks defeats the Chicago Cubs, 6-0, as he becomes only the third pitcher in major league history to win six games in April.

2002 — Al Leiter cruised through seven three-hit innings in the New York Mets’ 10-1 rout of Arizona to become the first pitcher to beat all 30 teams in the majors.

2005 — Major league players are asked by Commissioner Bud Selig to agree to a 50-game suspension for the first offense, a 100-game suspension for the second offense and a lifelong ban after the third offense for the use of steroids.

2008 — Julio Franco announces his retirement as a player at age 49.

2012 — Ryan Braun hit three homers and a two-run triple in Milwaukee’s 8-3 win over San Diego. No player had hit three homers and a triple in a game since Fred Lynn in 1975.

2017 — Anthony Rendon had 10 RBIs, three home runs and six hits, powering the Washington Nationals past the New York Mets 23-5. Rendon went a career-best 6 for 6 and scored five times.

2019 — CC Sabathia becomes the 17th pitcher to reach 3,000 strikeouts.

2020 — The latest event to be cancelled due to the ongoing global coronavirus pandemic is the annual Little League World Series.

2022 — Clayton Kershaw becomes the Dodgers’ all-time franchise leader for strikeouts when he fans Spencer Torkelson of the Tigers in the 4th inning. With 2,697 strikeouts, he moves past Hall of Famer Don Sutton.

Compiled by the Associated Press

Until next time…

That concludes today’s newsletter. If you have any feedback, ideas for improvement or things you’d like to see, email me at houston.mitchell@latimes.com. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.

CHICAGO — Drew Romo hit the first two home runs of his career as the Chicago White Sox beat the Angels 5-2 on Tuesday night. It was the fifth loss in a row for the Angels.

Colson Montgomery homered in the second off Angels starter José Soriano (5-1), ending his shutout streak at 25 2/3 innings. The right-hander gave up three runs and six hits over five innings, raising his major league-leading ERA from 0.24 to 0.84.

Davis Martin (4-1) outpitched Soriano, giving up one run and seven hits in 5 2/3 innings. Martin struck out seven and walked one.

Sean Newcomb fanned three in 1 1/3 scoreless innings and Seranthony Domínguez worked a hitless ninth for his seventh save.

Josh Lowe homered for the Angels, and Jo Adell had an RBI single.

CHICAGO — Munetaka Murakami hit a three-run homer in a big seventh-inning rally, and the Chicago White Sox held off the slumping Angels for an 8-7 win Monday night.

Andrew Benintendi had three RBIs as Chicago improved to 6-4 in its last 10 games. Former Dodger Miguel Vargas hit a solo drive, and Tristan Peters had two hits and scored two runs.

Jorge Soler hit a solo homer for the Angels in the rain-delayed opener of a three-game series. Mike Trout had two hits and scored twice.

The Angels blew a 5-1 lead in their fourth consecutive loss and eighth in nine games overall. They had a 6-0 lead Sunday at Kansas City and lost 11-9 when Lane Thomas hit a three-run homer for the Royals in the 10th inning.

The White Sox sent 10 batters to the plate while scoring seven times in the seventh. It was their biggest inning of the season.

Benintendi’s two-run double off Nick Sandlin (0-1) trimmed the Angels’ lead to one. Murakami then greeted Drew Pomeranz with a drive to right-center for his major league-best 12th homer. Vargas followed Murakami with another homer for an 8-5 lead.

The 26-year-old Murakami, a rookie slugger from Japan, is batting .349 (15 for 43) with seven homers and 14 RBIs in his past 10 games.

Osvaldo Bido (2-0) pitched three innings of one-run ball for the win.

Soler and Nolan Schanuel each drove in a run in the ninth against Grant Taylor before Bryan Hudson retired Adam Frazier on a bouncer to second, stranding runners at second and third. It was Hudson’s first career save.

The start was delayed three hours as rain and thunderstorms rolled over Rate Field.

Last year, Nottingham Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis placed the club into a blind trust in case they qualified for the Champions League.

That could have presented a conflict with his other club, Olympiakos.

With Forest in the semi-finals of the Europa League, once again they have a chance of being in the Champions League. And Olympiakos look like being in it too.

In a blind trust, relevant parties transfer their shares to independent trustees, whereby all the decision-making of the club will rest solely under the control of the third party.

The club are controlled through a company called NF Football Investments.

Until 28 February, Marinakis was the only person with significant control.

He was removed and it was passed to another company, Pittville Four Limited, controlled by Janet Lucy Gibson, Henry Peter Hickman and Eleanor Catherine Walsh.

Those three independent trustees were also added to the football club’s board, replacing Mighael Dugher, Simon Forster and Jonathan Owen.

Forest’s problem could be that the new additions had to pass the Premier League’s owners and directors test.

It was not until 17 April that Companies House was updated.

The Premier League’s register of directors, last updated on 2 April, still lists Marinakis, Dugher, Forster and Owen.

Will the lodging of the blind trust on 28 February be enough? Or would Uefa consider 17 April to be date the club were compliant?

Forest are adamant that control was officially relinquished by Marinakis on 28 February and they will have no issue with Uefa.

Two years ago, the CFCB accepted a blind trust to admit Manchester City and Girona to the Champions League, and Manchester United and Nice to the Europa League, satisfied that multi-cub ownership issues had been resolved.

However, at the time it stated that it “will not be bound by this alternative in subsequent seasons”.

Until the CFCB makes another ruling on a blind trust, there is no absolute certainty it would be accepted.

The Colorado Avalanche rode swagger, poise and the league’s stingiest goaltender to the best record in the NHL this season. And nothing about that formula has changed in the postseason, with goals from Gabriel Landeskog, Cale Makar, Artturi Lehkonen and Brock Nelson giving Colorado a 4-2 win Thursday over the Kings and a commanding 3-0 lead in their best-of-seven first-round playoff series.

The Kings, who have lost their last six first-round playoff series, need a victory at home Sunday to extend their season. Their goals in Game 3 came from Trevor Moore in the second period and Adrian Kempe on a third-period power play.

“They’re best team in the league for a reason. But we’re right there,” forward Quinton Byfield said. “We’re a confident group.”

“One game at home. Must-win game,” defenseman Drew Doughty added. “Everyone’s going to give everything they’ve got. We’ve got to win that one, and then hopefully get to go back to Denver.”

Colorado Avalanche defenseman Devon Toews celebrates a goal by defenseman Cale Makar on Kings goaltender Anton Forsberg during the second period of Game 3 Thursday at Crypto.com Arena.

(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

The difference in the series has been Avalanche goalie Scott Wedgewood, who was nearly perfect again, making 24 saves to place the Kings 60 minutes away from the offseason.

Anton Forsberg, playing in the postseason for the first time, has been almost as good in goal for the Kings, though he was victimized by two fluke goals and an empty-netter.

“Both goalies in the series have been unbelievable,” Kings coach D.J. Smith said. “Give Wedgewood credit. This guy looks like he’s putting his name on the circuit as a big-time goalie.”

The Avalanche, who certainly haven’t needed many lucky breaks in this series, got one early in the first period when Landeskog spun and launched a wild wrister from the blue line that went well wide of the net, only to have the puck carom off the end boards and into the net off Forsberg’s right skate blade.

The goal was the second in as many games for the Colorado captain.

The Kings then got their own break six minutes into the second period when Alex Laferriere jumped Brett Kulak’s clearing pass in the neutral jump and fed Byfield, whose pass into the crease struck Moore’s leg and ricocheted past Wedgewood to tie the score.

Colorado defenseman Devon Toews reaches for the puck against Kings right wing Quinton Byfield in the first period.

(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

Colorado needed less than seven minutes to get the lead back, with Makar getting the puck along the boards on the left wing, skating into space at the point, then zipping a wrist shot through heavy traffic and just under the crossbar.

The Avalanche then increased the advantage 7:39 in the final period after Kempe fanned a shot from the point. Lehkonen collected the loose puck and took it the length of the ice before deflecting a centering pass off Kempe’s skate and by Forsberg for a short-handed goal, his second score of the series.

That appeared to put the game away, but after the Kings pulled Forsberg for an extra attacker, Kempe halved the deficit on a tip-in with 4:02 to play. But then Nelson forced a turnover and scored into the empty net with 2:18 left.

The six goals combined matched the total number from the first two games in Colorado.

“We’ve got to keep doing a lot of the things that we are doing,” Doughty said. “Obviously, we got to clean up giving up some of these chances that we’re giving up.”

Kings goalie Anton Forsberg covers the puck as Colorado left wing Gabriel Landeskog battles for it in the second period.

(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

The Kings’ penalty kill, which ranked 30th in the 32-team league during the regular season, has been brilliant against the Avalanche, turning back all nine Colorado power plays. That, plus stellar play for Forsberg in goal, has frustrated the NHL’s top-scoring team.

But against Wedgewood, the Kings have mustered little offense, scoring just four goals in the series — three times on the power play and once off Moore’s leg.

“We’d like to get more than two goals. Against this team, I don’t think it’s enough,” Doughty said. “I don’t think we’re creating enough grade-A chances on Wedgewood. He has played well, so for us to beat them, we’ve got to wear them down in the D-zone, make them tired and score goals that way. And we haven’t done that enough.”

They’re guaranteed just one more chance to turn that around.

“There’s no quit in there,” Smith said of the Kings’ locker room. “And I think you’ll see our best game. To a man, we want to give them a real good outing and push this series back to Colorado.”

DENVER — The Kings haven’t won an NHL playoff series since the last time they won the Stanley Cup, which is to say it’s been a while.

They’re halfway to another early exit after a 2-1 overtime loss to the Colorado Avalanche on Tuesday, a result that gave the Avalanche a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven series. The winning goal came from Nicolas Roy 7:44 in the extra period.

The Kings’ lone goal came from Artemi Panarin while captain Gabriel Landeskog had the other Colorado goal.

“We did play really well,” interim coach D.J. Smith said. “We’ve got to find a way to win a game. Clearly, good isn’t enough. We’ve got to win a game and keep taking a piece of them and keep playing physical and give ourselves a chance to keep lengthening the series.”

Panarin gave the Kings a 1-0 lead on a wrister from the inside edge of the right circle with less than seven minutes left in regulation. It was his second power-play goal of the series and it came on the Kings’ fifth power play of the night.

It also came after the Kings got a fortunate break, with a Colorado clearing pass striking a linesman, leading to a faceoff in the Kings’ offensive end.

Landeskog evened things for Colorado 3 1/2 minutes later, escaping Kings forward Scott Laughton to skate to a Martin Necas pass through the crease before pushing the puck inside the left post to send the game to overtime.

For the Kings, it marked their 34^th overtime in 84 games this season, an NHL record. They lost 21 of them but Tuesday’s was the most painful, with Roy scoring on a deflection in the crease.

“We had every opportunity,” Smith said. “You’ve got to be able to close it out.”

The teams now head to Crypto.com Arena for games Thursday and Sunday with the Kings needing at least one win to extend their season.

“I expect that we’ll be better at home,” Smith said.

To do that, the Kings are going to have to stop wasting the kind of opportunities they had in Denver, where they converted just two of nine power-play chances and failed to score on a penalty shot in the first two games.

The physical series turned chippy in late in Game 1 and that carried over to the start of Game 2 with a pair of scuffles, each involving more than a half-dozen players, breaking out 12 seconds apart midway through the first period. The teams combined for seven penalties in a fast-paced opening 20 minutes played with a lot of open ice.

Quinton Byfield had two chances to put the Kings on the board just more than three minutes into the second period but Colorado goalie Scott Wedgewood came up big both times.

Kings goaltender Anton Forsberg makes a save during overtime of Game 2.

(Jack Dempsey / Associated Press)

The first came when Byfield charged Wedgewood on a breakaway, only to have the goalie stop his wrister from in close. But Avalanche defenseman Cale Makar was called for hooking Byfield from behind on the play, setting up a penalty shot. Wedgewood stopped that too.

An over-excited group of fans celebrated the two saves by breaking a pane of glass behind the Kings bench, sending the coaches scurrying and pausing the game for several minutes as workmen repaired the damage. But 16 seconds after play resumed, the Avalanche took another penalty, their sixth of seven on the night.

The Colorado penalties left the Kings with a man advantage for nearly a quarter of the game’s first 25 minutes, but their power play couldn’t take advantage against a Colorado penalty kill that ranked No. 1 in the NHL during the regular season.

“Obviously, you just want the opportunities,” forward Trevor Moore said. “Now we’ve just got to make the most of them.”

Colorado’s best scoring chance in the first two periods came on a three-on-one rush less than five minutes before the second intermission, but Kings defenseman Mikey Anderson reached in to break up the play and keep the game scoreless.

Colorado celebrates its Game 2 victory over the Kings.

(Jack Dempsey / Associated Press)

Sam Malinski appeared to give the Avalanche the lead on a slap shot from above the left circle 10 seconds into the final period, but after the horn sounded and the goal was put in the scoreboard, the officials correctly ruled the puck had struck the outside of the net.

Five minutes later Byfield fanned on a loose puck in the crease, allowing Wedgewood to roll over and clear it from in front of the open net.

Now the Kings come home, where they won six of their final seven regular-season games, the only loss coming in a shootout. But they haven’t beaten the Avalanche anywhere this season and if they have to at least once in the next two games to avoid their seventh straight first-round playoff exit.

“Thought we played better tonight,” Moore said. “So we’ve to to try to just take the positives and get to L.A. and play a good game.”

Kings lose to the Avalanche

From Kevin Baxter: Different opponent. Same result.

In each of the last four seasons, the Kings have opened the Stanley Cup playoffs against the Edmonton Oilers. They lost each time.

So on Sunday the Kings tried a different route, opening against the Colorado Avalanche.

They lost, 2-1.

The goals came from Artturi Lehkonen late in the second period and Logan O’Connor early in the third. The Kings made a game of it late, pulling goaltender Anton Fosberg with 2:57 to play and getting a power-play goal from Artemi Panarin 35 seconds later.

But if the Kings lost the game they also gained a ton of confidence with the way they played against the winningest team in the NHL during the regular season.

“The guys did what they had to do and played the right way,” interim coach D.J. Smith said “It is what it is. We’re down in the series, but a lot of good things.”

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Kings summary

NHL playoffs bracket

Kings playoffs schedule

All times Pacific

at Colorado 2, Kings 1 (summary)

Tuesday: Kings at Colorado, 7 p.m., ESPN

Thursday: Colorado at Kings, 7 p.m., TNT, truTV, HBO Max

Sunday: Colorado at Kings, 1:30 p.m., TNT, truTV, HBO Max

*Wed., April 29: Kings at Colorado, TBD

*Friday, May 1: Colorado at Kings, TBD

*Sunday, May 3: Kings at Colorado, TBD

*- If necessary

Ducks playoffs schedule

All times Pacific

Monday: Ducks at Edmonton, 7 p.m., ESPN2

Wednesday: Ducks at Edmonton, 7 p.m., TBS, HBO Max

Friday: Edmonton at Ducks, 7 p.m., TNT, truTV, HBO Max)

Sunday: Edmonton at Ducks, 6:30 p.m., ESPN

*Tuesday, April 28: Ducks at Edmonton, TBD

*Thursday, April 30: Edmonton at Ducks, TBD

*Saturday, May 2: Ducks at Edmonton, TBD

*-if necessary

Dodgers lose to Rockies

From Mirjam Swanson: What do you know? The once-stampeding Dodgers have been caged by the Colorado Rockies.

With a 9-6 loss Sunday at Coors Field, the two-time defending World Series champions lost back-to-back games for the first time this season. The Dodgers again couldn’t hold a lead, letting the Rockies tee off for 15 hits.

Nor could the Dodgers keep up offensively at the hitter-friendly park — though they put some pressure on in the ninth inning, when Shohei Ohtani led off with a ground-rule double and the Dodgers scored twice to cut the lead to three runs. Then the new guy, Ryan Ward, made the final out in his big league debut, robbed of a hit and a chance to keep chipping away by a diving Troy Johnston in right field.

Before that, the Rockies — who beat the Dodgers twice in 13 meetings all of last season — chased starter Roki Sasaki from the game in the fifth inning and then ruffled the Dodgers’ relievers. That included closer Edwin Díaz, who came on in the eighth and promptly gave up three singles, a walk and two runs before being pulled with the Dodgers trailing 8-4.

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Shaikin: Rick Monday saved an American flag in 1976. Why the moment resonates 50 years later

Dodgers box score

MLB standings

Angels lose to Padres

Xander Bogaerts and Bryce Johnson delivered two-out RBIs as the San Diego Padres defeated the Angels 2-1 on Sunday.

Bogaerts broke a scoreless tie with an RBI single in the fourth inning, and Johnson added a two-out RBI single in the seventh as San Diego took two of three games in the series. Johnson finished with two of San Diego’s five hits for his multihit game of the season.

Michael King (3-1) gave up one hit over five scoreless innings, striking out six and walking four while working through traffic. He combined with Ron Marinaccio, Kyle Hart, Bradgley Rodriguez and Mason Miller to hold the Angels to two hits.

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Appreciation: Angels great Garret Anderson was a Hall of Famer in area stats couldn’t measure

Angels box score

MLB standings

Lakers can steal the series

From Bill Plaschke: The Lakers limped painfully into the playoffs Saturday night only to delightfully discover a miracle salve.

An opponent as mangled as they were.

Yes, the Lakers are beginning this tournament seriously hampered by the indefinite absences of Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves.

But — surprise, surprise — the Houston Rockets showed up with a bad leg of their own, a recently suffered knee contusion that sidelined leading scorer Kevin Durant for at least the first game of this first-round series.

The result? Check out the wide-mouthed scream unleashed by the Lakers’ Luke Kennard midway through the fourth quarter.

The Lakers: Loud and surprising and inspiring.

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Luke Kennard provides a jolt of Luka magic, helping the Lakers beat the Rockets

Lakers playoff schedule

First round
All times Pacific

at Lakers 107, Houston 98 (box score)
Tuesday: Houston at Lakers, 7:30 p.m., NBC
Friday: Lakers at Houston, 5:30 p.m., Amazon Prime Video
Sunday: Lakers at Houston, 6:30 p.m., NBC
*Wed., April 29: Houston at Lakers, TBD
*Friday, May 1: Lakers at Houston, TBD
*Sunday, May 3: Houston at Lakers, TBD

*-if necessary

Alex Palou wins Long Beach Grand Prix

From Steve Galluzzo: For two thirds of Sunday’s Acura Long Beach Grand Prix, Alex Palou bided his time… waiting for the one break he needed.

It came in the form of a caution on the 58th lap, allowing him to overtake front-runner Felix Rosenqvist exiting pit lane and hold the lead the rest of the way, taking the checkered flag by 3.96 seconds for his third triumph in five IndyCar Series races this season and his first at Long Beach.

Right after being showered with applause and confetti at victory lane, the 29-year-old Spaniard thanked his crew, whose quick work on the last pit stop proved to be the difference.

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Race results

LAFC loses to Earthquakes

Ousseni Bouda scored two goals in the second half, ending LAFC goalie Hugo Lloris’ scoreless run to begin the season at 593 minutes, and the San José Earthquakes stunned LAFC 4-1 on Sunday night in an early Western Conference showdown.

San José (7-1-0) moves into a first-place tie with the Vancouver Whitecaps in the Western Conference and Supporters’ Shield races in the Earthquakes’ second season under head coach Bruce Arena.

Daniel De Sousa Britto missed a chance to tie Lloris with a sixth clean sheet on an own goal by Reid Roberts in the 74th minute. He had three saves.

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LAFC summary

MLS standings

This day in sports history

1944 — NFL legalizes coaching from bench.

1958 — The Montreal Canadiens win the NHL Stanley Cup for the third straight year with a 5-3 victory over the Boston Bruins in the sixth game.

1986 — Chicago’s Michael Jordan sets an NBA single-game playoff scoring record with 63 points in a 135-131 double overtime loss to the Boston Celtics, in Game 2 of the first round in the Eastern Conference.

1991 — Mark Lenzi becomes the first person to score 100 points on a single dive. On his last dive, Lenzi scores 101.85 points on a reverse 3½ somersault from the tuck position to win the 3-meter springboard title at the U.S. Indoor Diving Championships.

1996 — NFL Draft: Keyshawn Johnson from USC first pick by New York Jets.

1997 — Chicago’s Michael Jordan wins an unprecedented ninth scoring title with an average of 29.6 points, the first time in those nine seasons that he fails to average at least 30 points.

1997 — PGA Seniors’ Championship Men’s Golf, PGA National GC: Defending champion Hale Irwin wins his second of three straight Senior PGA Championships.

2002 — NFL Draft: Fresno State quarterback David Carr #1 pick by Houston Texans.

2007 — Roger Federer wins his 500th match, defeating David Ferrer 6-4, 6-0 in the quarterfinals of the Monte Carlo Masters.

2008 — Danica Patrick becomes the first female winner in IndyCar history, capturing the Indy Japan 300 in her 50th career start. Patrick takes the lead from pole-sitter Helio Castroneves on the 198th lap in the 200-lap race and finishes 5.8594 seconds ahead of Castroneves.

2008 — Lorena Ochoa becomes the first LPGA Tour player in 45 years to win four tournaments in consecutive weeks. Ochoa shoots a three-under 69 in the final round of the Ginn Open and beats rookie Yani Tseng by three strokes for her fifth victory in six starts. Mickey Wright did it in 1963.

2014 — Bernard Hopkins, 49, becomes the oldest to win a unification light-heavyweight bout as he captures a split 12-round decision over 30-year-old Beibut Shumenov of Kazakhstan. Hopkins, who improves to 55-6-2, retains his IBF title and wins the WBA and IBA belts.

2015 — Lelisa Desisa of Ethiopia wins the 119th Boston Marathon, his second victory here. Desisa, who finishes in 2:09:17, also won the 2013 race just hours before a pair of bombs exploded at the finish line. Caroline Rotich of Kenya wins the women’s race.

2017 — LeBron James finishes with 41 points, 13 rebounds and 12 assists, and the Cleveland Cavaliers set an NBA postseason record by erasing a 25-point halftime deficit to beat the Indiana Pacers 119-114 and take a 3-0 lead. Cleveland trailed by 26 in the first half and was still down 74-49 at halftime. The largest halftime deficit overcome to win a playoff game had been 21 points by Baltimore against Philadelphia in 1948.

2017 — Roman Josi scores twice, Pekka Rinne has 30 saves and the Nashville Predators beat the Chicago Blackhawks 4-1 to complete a surprising sweep of the Western Conference’s top seed. It’s the first time a No. 1 seed is swept in the first round since the NHL adopted its current playoff format in 1994.

2021 — All six EPL clubs withdraw from the controversial European Super League just 3 days after it was announced – Chelsea, Manchester City, Liverpool, Arsenal, Manchester United and Tottenham.

Compiled by the Associated Press

This day in baseball history

1910 — Addie Joss of Cleveland pitched the second no-hitter of his career, a 1-0 win over the White Sox in Chicago.

1912 — Fenway Park was opened in Boston and the Red Sox defeated the visiting New York Highlanders, later known as the Yankees, 7-6 in 11 innings. Tiger Stadium in Detroit also opened its doors as the Tigers defeated the Cleveland Indians 6-5.

1916 — The Chicago Cubs played their first game at Weeghman Park — renamed Wrigley Field in 1926 — defeating the Cincinnati Reds 7-6 in 11 innings.

1920 — Manager Gavy Cravath of the Philadelphia Phillies inserted himself as a pinch-hitter and beat the New York Giants with a three-run homer, 3-0. It was his last home run in the majors.

1937 — Gee Walker hit for the cycle on opening day to lead the Detroit Tigers to a 4-3 win over Cleveland. Walker hit the cycle in reverse order: home run, triple, double, single.

1938 — Cleveland’s Bob Feller pitched the first of 12 career one-hitters, beating the St. Louis Browns 9-0.

1939 — In his first major league game, Ted Williams hit a 400-foot double as the Boston Red Sox lost 2-0 to New York at Yankee Stadium.

1941 — The Brooklyn Dodgers become the first major league team to wear protective headgear.

1967 — Tom Seaver of the New York Mets recorded his first major league victory with a 6-1 triumph over the Chicago Cubs. Seaver went 7 2-3 innings and gave up eight hits and one run.

1982 — The Atlanta Braves recorded their 12th consecutive victory from the beginning of the season — a 4-2 decision over Cincinnati in Atlanta — and eclipsed the major league record set a year earlier by the Oakland A’s.

1988 — The Baltimore Orioles set a major league record with their 14th straight defeat at the start of the season, losing to the Milwaukee Brewers 8-6.

1990 — Seattle’s Brian Holman lost his bid for baseball’s 13th perfect game with two out in the ninth inning on Ken Phelps’ pinch-hit home run in the Mariners’ 6-1 victory over the Oakland Athletics.

1997 — The Chicago Cubs stopped their season-opening losing streak at 14 games, rallying in the sixth inning to beat the New York Mets 4-3 in the second game of a doubleheader. The Mets won the opener 8-2. Chicago’s 0-14 start set a National League record and was the second worst behind the 1988 Baltimore Orioles, who began 0-21.

1999 — Cincinnati Reds owner Marge Schott agrees to sell her controlling interest in the Reds to a group headed by Carl H. Lindner, ending her 14-year tenure.

2001 — Carlos Delgado of the Blue Jays hit three homers for the second time this season, as Toronto beat the Kansas City Royals 12-4.

2006 — Julio Franco became the oldest player in major league history to hit a home run when he hit a two-run, pinch-hit shot in the eighth inning to help the New York Mets rally for a 7-2 win over San Diego. Franco, 47, replaced Athletics pitcher Jack Quinn in the record book who was 46 years, 357 days old when he homered on June 27, 1930.

2007 — Alex Rodriguez went 3-for-5 with two home runs in a 7-6 loss to Boston and joined Mike Schmidt, who hit 12 homers in the first 15 games in 1976, as the fastest to reach a dozen in baseball history.

2008 — The Blue Jays release former superstar Frank Thomas, who has 516 major league home runs.

2010 — Pitcher Edinson Volquez of the Reds is suspended for 50 games for failing a PED test during spring training.

2011 — Commissioner Bud Selig steps in and takes control of the day-to-day operations of the Dodgers from owner Frank McCourt.

2012 — Drew Stubbs had three hits and drove in three runs to lead the Cincinnati Reds to a 9-4 win over the Chicago Cubs — the 10,000th victory in franchise history.

2021 — Corbin Burnes strikes out 10 batters and walks none in 6 innings in a 6-0 Brewers win over the Padres.

Compiled by the Associated Press

Until next time…

That concludes today’s newsletter. If you have any feedback, ideas for improvement or things you’d like to see, email me at houston.mitchell@latimes.com. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.

Hunter Haight got his first career goal and rookie Jesper Wallstedt auditioned for action in the playoffs with 35 saves as the Minnesota Wild finished their regular season by beating the Ducks 3-2 on Tuesday night.

Danila Yurov and Robby Fabbri also scored for the playoff-bound Wild, who have won 21 of their last 22 games against the Ducks, including eight in a row.

Wallstedt, who is second in the NHL in save percentage, went 18-9-6 in his debut and has given the Wild plenty to consider for a potential postseason goalie rotation with Filip Gustavsson. Wallstedt allowed only 12 goals over his last six starts.

Mason McTavish scored on a power play in the first period and again on a tip-in with 45 seconds left for the Ducks, who clinched their first spot in the playoffs since 2018 during an off night on Monday when Nashville lost to San José.

The Ducks, who have 90 points with one game left, are 1-6-2 in their last eight games. They can no longer win the Pacific Division and could still fall to the second wild-card spot, which would match up with Presidents’ Trophy winner Colorado in the first round.

The Ducks haven’t won a playoff series since a second round victory over Edmonton in 2017, though that’s two years more recent than Minnesota’s last postseason advancement.

The Wild, who rested 10 regular skaters, giving Haight, the team’s 2022 second-round draft pick, an opportunity as the second line center in his eighth NHL game. He ripped a shot from the slot in the second period to get on the board.

Jake DeBrusk scored his second goal of the game in overtime and the Vancouver Canucks beat the Kings 4-3 on Tuesday night.

DeBrusk collected a pass from center Elias Pettersson and tapped a shot in to seal the victory 2:58 into the extra period.

Defenseman Elias Pettersson opened the scoring for the Canucks, and DeBrusk and Zeev Buium added goals in the second period. Elias Pettersson had two assists. The Canucks won their third straight game for the first time since Dec. 14-20, when they took four straight road victories.

Kevin Lankinen stopped 31 of the 34 shots he faced as Vancouver improved to 9-27-5 on home ice this season.

Quinton Byfield and Alex Laferriere each had a goal and an assist for the Kings. Adrian Kempe scored his 36th of the season and Darcy Kuemper made 21 saves.

DeBrusk scored for a third straight game. His three goals across the stretch came on the power play. The 29-year-old winger has scored 19 of his 23 goals with the man advantage this season.

Anze Kopitar played his final game at Rogers Arena and registered an assist on Kempe’s second-period goal. He has 864 assists, all with L.A. That ranks third among active players with a single franchise, trailing only the Penguins’ Evgeni Malkin (874) and Sidney Crosby (1,107).

The Kings have secured a playoff berth and remain in the Western Conference’s second wild-card spot with one game remaining.

The Kings had their five-game winning streak halted, but they did earn a point for the eighth straight game (6-0-2).