Winners, losers from the very early days of Islanders' Mathieu Darche era
Barely a week into the Mathieu Darche era on Long Island, the new general manager's vision is already taking shape.
The Post picks the (very) early winners and losers from the Darche Era.
Winners
Advertisement
Patrick Roy
Not only is Roy back behind the bench as head coach, but he gets a larger say in shaping his assistant coaching staff after John MacLean and Tommy Albelin were let go and has a general manager who sounded very much aligned with him on how the team should play.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
New Crowned Event Week 1 In NHL 25 HUT
The new Crowned Event in now live in NHL 25 Hockey Ultimate Team. The event celebrates NHL award winners for the 2024-25 season. The five master set players are 96 overall Wayne Gretzky, Patrick Roy, Cale Makar, Jack Eichel, and Nicklas Lidstrom, they come with no cost AP. Advertisement 95 overall Sean Monahan, Aleksander Barkov, and Nikita Kucherov were added to celebrate their awards, Kucherov appeared at 96 overall in the original banner. 12 base cards were added including 94 overall John Carlson and Anze Kopitar. There is a 90 overall Nick Bonino available for completing Objectives and an 88 overall Zach Whitecloud for completing Wildcard levels. EA SPORTS NHL 25 EA SPORTS NHL 25 EA SPORTS NHL 25 The Hockey News' Stanley Cup Final simulation predicted the Florida Panthers to win in five games here. For more NHL 25 news make sure you bookmark The Hockey News Gaming Site or follow our Google News Feed. Photo Credit: EA SPORTS NHL
New York Post
a day ago
- New York Post
Jockey Junior Alvarado savoring Sovereignty's run in roller-coaster spring ahead of Belmont Stakes
SARATOGA SPRINGS — No jockey in the nation — perhaps no athlete, for that matter — has seen more ups and downs this spring than Long Island-based Junior Alvarado. He's been injured falling off a horse that had suffered a heart attack, won the Kentucky Derby aboard Sovereignty, been fined and suspended for alleged whip abuse in that life-changing triumph, and felt the letdown of his horse being held out of the Preakness, ending his Triple Crown hopes. There's still so much more to the Alvarado and Sovereignty story to be told, beginning Saturday in the 157th Belmont Stakes at Saratoga Race Course. There will be seven other horses in the field, including Preakness winner Journalism, who is the 8-5 morning line favorite, just ahead of 2-1 Sovereignty. 5 Jockey Junior Alvarado will ride Sovereignty in the Belmont Stakes. Jason Szenes for the NY Post Other top contenders include Baeza, who ran third in the Kentucky Derby, Bob Baffert-trained Rodriguez and Bobby Flay-owned Crudo. Alvarado wasn't sure he'd get to ride Sovereignty for Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott in the Kentucky Derby. On March 23, he was aboard Term in the 10th race at Gulfstream Park. Term suffered a fatal heart attack, throwing Alvarado and fracturing his shoulder blade. He missed his Florida Derby ride on Sovereignty but was back for the Derby. 5 Jockey Junior Alvarado arrives to the barn on June 4, 2025. Jason Szenes for the NY Post At Churchill Downs, Sovereignty outdueled Journalism down the stretch for the 39-year-old Alvarado's crowning glory. 'It's the greatest achievement I have in my career as a jockey,' Alvarado told The Post in a wide-ranging conversation outside Sovereignty's barn at Saratoga. 'Even personally, it's taken me to many good places. It's been a really good experience, not only for me but with my family.' Alvarado's victory tour has included throwing out the first pitch at Yankee Stadium and having an ice cream flavor — Junior Mint — named after him by his sponsor, the 98-year-old Hildebrandt's of Williston Park. 'We've been a team and it's nice to have a teammate that can participate in something like that,' Mott said. 'He's been very loyal to us in terms of being willing to ride whatever we wanted him to ride and he's done a good job for us. So that's special.' 5 Jockey Junior Alvarado kisses his horse Sovereignty at the barn on June 4, 2025. Jason Szenes for the NY Post The jockey, who resides in Garden City with his wife, Kelly, and three children, became an instant local celebrity after his victory at Churchill Downs. 'It's been very interesting. When we got home Sunday morning, we had a 'Congratulations' on the front door, we had an inflatable horse, I couldn't even believe people already knew that and were putting stuff up at the house,' he said. 'Everywhere in town where we go, someone recognizes me. It's been very heartwarming.' The joyride did not include a chance to win the Triple Crown, however, as Mott and ownership at Godolphin Racing quickly opted to skip the Preakness and rest up for the Belmont. 'For me, the dream was to win the Derby,' he said. 'Once I won the Derby, a few days later, I started thinking I probably could have a chance at a Triple Crown. 5 Jockey Junior Alvarado celebrates after winning the Kentucky Derby on May 3. USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images 'But I know the way Bill Mott works and that there would be a slim chance he would get to run in the Preakness. Eventually he did say to me that they wanted to skip that. So you're a little bummed about it. You want to have a Triple Crown, you have the ability to [win] one, but you've got to do what's best for the horse.' Alvarado is the son of Venezuelan jockey Rafael Alvarado. Junior — his legal first name after his parents listed it as Junior Rafael Alvarado on his birth certificate — came to the U.S. in 2007 as a bug boy (apprentice jockey). 5 Jockey Junior Alvarado reacts after winning the Kentucky Derby on May 3, 2025. USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images His Kentucky Derby joy was tempered by a two-day suspension and $62,000 fine by the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority for allegedly whipping Sovereignty eight times (the limit is six). Alvarado says an appeal is pending and that although he presented the whip eight times, he struck the horse only six times. Mott agrees, telling The Post he's watched the video numerous times and counted only six strikes. 'I don't think they can count,' he said. None of that will matter Saturday, and Alvarado believes he has the best horse in the Belmont. 'He's very smart,' Alvarado said of Sovereignty. 'He lets me know. He tells me when he's ready. At a certain point in the race, he kind of jumps on it and, 'Hey, I'm ready to go.' After that you just take the reins and guide him and most of the time he's there for me.'
New York Post
a day ago
- New York Post
Runner who stepped off podium with trans athlete speaks out
High-school track star Alexa Anderson decided to step down — off the championship podium — for what she believes, when faced with the prospect of sharing the honor with a transgender competitor. 'I knew that something needs to be done to bring attention to this issue and to let the people who are in charge know that us athletes are not okay with the position they put us in,' the 18-year-old told The Post. On Saturday, Anderson, a senior competing for Tigard High School, took third place in the Oregon State Athletic Association's Girls High Jump Final while Lia Rose, a transgender athlete from Ida B. Wells High School took fifth. Anderson jumped 5 feet 4.25 inches, compared to Rose's 5 feet 1.65 inches. Advertisement 5 Alexa Anderson and Reese Eckard stepped down off the podium in protest on Saturday. America First Policy Institute When the top eight jumpers took the podium, Anderson and fourth-place runner Reese Eckard, a senior from Sherwood High School, stepped down in unison and turned their backs in protest. 'I was definitely stressed just with all those eyes on you, kind of looking at you wondering what you're doing and why,' Anderson said. 'But all female athletes, no matter if they are in elementary school, middle school or high school … I want them to have a fair and equal opportunity to compete.' Advertisement Going into the meet, Anderson knew that she wouldn't stand on the podium if Rose, who had competed in the boy's division in 2023 and 2024, placed. She and Eckart, who had been a 'friendly competitor' for the past four years, had already made a pact to step down together. 5 Alexa Anderson has been running track since she was a freshman in high school. Alexa Anderson/ Instagram She claims several other girls who made the podium had also intended to join, but backed down in the moment: 'It's a very controversial topic, and I think some people are more inclined to express their concerns privately.' The crowd at Hayward Field reacted with silence, and an official confronted the pair. When they said they weren't participating, the official told them to step aside and get out of the way of photos. Advertisement Even though she and Eckart were the only ones to take a public stand, she says Rose's presence in the sport had caused upset among her teammates throughout the season. 5 Anderson says several other girls on the podium planned to step down but ultimately backed down from the plan. Fox News 'The overall sentiment was kind of confused and concerned for the integrity of our sport,' she explained. 'Girls I talked to were worried that their opportunities were going to be taken away, or that they wouldn't make it to the championship because there was a biological man that was jumping better than them.' Since the incident, there's been an outpouring of private support, and Anderson reports receiving 'a lot of kind messages from people thanking me for standing up for what I believe in.' There have also been people who were less than kind. Advertisement 'Some people are definitely coming at me with a hateful attitude,' she admitted. 'There are people at school that are offended and are talking behind my back, but I expected that going into this, when I put myself out there on such a controversial topic.' 5 Anderson is committed to run track and field at the University of South Alabama next school year. Alexa Anderson/ Instagram Anderson, who joined the track team as a freshman, is graduating Thursday and plans to attend the University of South Alabama, where she will study exercise science and marine biology and is committed to run track and field. She said she supports a federal mandate banning trans athletes from female sports. President Trump enacted one in February via Title IX, but states including Oregon have continued to allow athletes to compete nonetheless. 'Title IX was originally used to ban sex-based discrimination in sports, and now we're facing sex-based discrimination again,' Anderson said. 'Biological women are being forced to compete with biological men, but the purpose of Title IX was to make sure that it didn't happen, that biological women had their equal opportunities.' 5 President Donald Trump signed an executive order banning trans athletes from women's sports in February. AP Anderson is legally represented by American First Policy Institute. A staff member told The Post they called on the federal government to investigate possible Title IX violations related to Saturday's race and are considering further litigation. 'I have been an athlete my whole life, and women's sports has done so much for me personally,' she said. 'By allowing biological men to compete in the women's division, we're taking away opportunities from other young girls who have worked so hard to get to where they are.'
