Latest news with #Eller
New York Times
14-05-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
How can the Capitals come back from a 3-1 deficit vs. Hurricanes? Start here
ARLINGTON, Va. — A few days ago, speaking before Game 4 of his team's Stanley Cup playoff series against the Carolina Hurricanes, Washington Capitals coach Spencer Carbery was asked about making lineup changes. At the time, Washington was down 2-1 but with less of a foothold than that suggested; winning a series when you have the puck as infrequently as the Capitals in the first three games is a tough hill to climb. Advertisement So, naturally, Carbery was open to mixing things up … with a caveat. 'The tricky part of that is those guys have been together all year long, essentially,' Carbery said. 'So (if) you're tinkering with things this time of year, you have to be careful. You want to make adjustments, but you don't want to go overboard to do something that the group is completely uncomfortable with and haven't utilized through 90-whatever games we've played this year.' Sounds pretty close to 'let's wait and see' — and, indeed, during a 5-2 Game 4 loss to the Hurricanes, the Capitals waited and saw. If Wednesday's practice lines hold, big changes to the forward group for Thursday's Game 5 are on the way. The clock is ticking on Washington's season. As The Athletic's Murat Ates noted from Winnipeg, teams down 3-1 have gone on to win 32 out of 352 NHL playoff series, a 9.1 percent success rate. The Athletic's Dom Luszczyszyn's in-house model gives the Capitals a 7 percent chance of completing the comeback. The odds of flipping a coin and getting heads four times in a row is 6.25. If Washington pulls it off, it'll almost certainly be because the new-look lines pay off. Here's more on what that'd entail, along with a few other elements that'd help the Capitals start to dig out from the 3-1 hole. The forward lines from Wednesday's practice are as follows: *-Placeholder for Alex Ovechkin, who had a maintenance day The biggest change is Connor McMichael moving off the left wing with Pierre-Luc Dubois and Tom Wilson and centering the third line in Lars Eller's place. The third line, with Eller in the middle, has been ineffective against Carolina, with Ryan Leonard getting scratched for Game 3 and returning for Game 4. Overall, in 13 minutes, 7 seconds together at five-on-five, Andrew Mangiapane-Eller-Leonard lost in shot attempts 20-6, shots on goal 10-2 and high-danger chances 10-2, and controlled an abysmal 17 percent of the expected goal share. On top of that, in Game 4, misplays by Eller and Leonard in the defensive zone helped set the table for a back-breaking goal by Carolina's Taylor Hall. Not a sustainable situation. Advertisement Replacing Eller with McMichael makes sense because it gives the third line a puncher's chance to actually drive offense. McMichael was second on the team in individual expected goals per 60 minutes in the regular season with 1.24. Eller was 14th with 0.71, and his play has also fallen off dramatically in the postseason; 0.14 expected goals per 60 is 17th on the Capitals, ahead of only defensemen Matt Roy and Trevor van Riemsdyk. McMichael, meanwhile, has continued showing an ability to create scoring chances. It's been on the wing, of course, but McMichael played down the middle basically until solidifying his spot on the Capitals' roster. 'I think it's going to be pretty seamless for me,' McMichael said. 'It's something even in practice a few times this year, I jumped in line rushes up the middle, just to stay fresh. So I think I'll be good.' Mangiapane and Leonard have more to offer offensively, too. The former scored 35 goals a few years ago for the Calgary Flames, and Carbery has consistently praised the latter's play with the puck on his stick. Having McMichael should give both more opportunities. '(Putting him at center is) no different than putting him at left wing or right wing,' Carbery said of McMichael. 'He's a good hockey player. He helps us in a lot of different areas. Penalty kill, power play, his pace of play. When he's using his feet, his quickness to evade big, long defenders. He's a good player for us.' From a chance-generation standpoint, the two games in Carolina were actually great for Ovechkin. He clocked in at more than three expected all-situations goals per 60, more than double his rate in the regular season, scoring once on the power play in the third period of Game 4. Washington needs more cash-ins from him, especially as most of the rest of its skaters struggle to generate those sorts of opportunities. Advertisement The Capitals almost certainly aren't going to win Ovechkin's minutes in terms of shot share or expected goals. That's fine. What makes him (and Strome) an effective first-line forward is his ability to put the chances he does get into the net at an impressive rate. If Ovechkin and Strome are scoring, all is well. If they're not, Washington is going to struggle. 'It's not like there's one recipe that's gonna solve (Hurricanes goaltender Frederik Andersen),' Strome said. 'We've got to get Grade-A chances, and we gotta bear down. We've had lots of chances in the first period in the last couple games and we haven't put them in.' As a team, the Capitals have done a good job of closing the gap in all-situations high-danger chances we saw in Game 1. In Game 2, Carolina held an 11-10 edge. Game 3 was 14-13 Capitals, and Game 4 was 10-6 Capitals. Probably not as lopsided as you'd guessed. The Capitals are taking solace in that, even as the time left to wait on puck luck runs short. 'Just staying on it and staying with it. You know they'll start to go,' Wilson said. 'Sometimes that's the way it goes in hockey. It's hard to score goals.' This is the biggest one. It's going to sound like a cop-out — because of course every team wants their goalie to be at his best — but that goes double for Washington and Logan Thompson. We're not going to harp on the shot-attempt disparity here, partially because Washington has gradually closed that a bit as the series has gone on, but Carolina is still almost certain to control the puck for a larger chunk of time than the Capitals. Thompson, as was the case in Game 2, needs to be the eraser. There are plenty of reasons to think he's capable. One: He's playing at home. Japers' Rink pointed all this out, but it bears repeating: In five playoff games at Capital One Arena, Thompson has a .954 save percentage and 10.6 goals saved above expectations. On the road, he's at .872 and 4.5 goals above expectations (more than one per game, on average). That's a major, major gap, and it's not one you can explain away with 'well, the Capitals are winning the tactical battle because they have last change.' They're not. They're allowing nearly half an expected goal per game more (3.46 vs. 2.95) at home. Thompson is the variable. Advertisement That's not to say he's the reason they went 0-for-2 in Carolina, either. He was fine — and chasing multi-goal leads for most of the third period in Game 5 had an effect. By Strome's count, they allowed five two-on-ones down the stretch in the Hurricanes' 5-2 win. 'We can't leave him out to dry like that,' Strome said. 'We've got full confidence in him and what he has to do, and he's done it all year. He did in the first round. He's done it in this round. And I expect no different in Game 5.' How often Carbery calls Thompson 'a gamer' has turned into a running joke over the last few weeks, so on Wednesday, he made a conscious effort to switch it up. 'These moments when chips are in the middle of the table and our season's on the line, he's a pretty safe bet,' Carbery said. 'He's a pretty safe bet because you know he's going to lay absolutely everything he's got on the line for his teammates. He wants to win as bad as anybody in our room, so I've got a lot of confidence.' (Photo of Alex Ovechkin: Grant Halverson / Getty Images)
Yahoo
09-05-2025
- Yahoo
Dog dies after being left in dumpster by Rusty's Pizza Parlor
BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KGET) — The Kern County Animal Shelter says Rose died from blunt force trauma injuries most likely from being run over by a car. Video shows someone wrapping the injured dog in blankets before tossing her in a dumpster behind a locked gate surrounded by razor wire, and jump proof spikes. It happened at 2 a.m., Monday behind Rusty's Pizza Parlor on Niles Street. A worker with Rusty's Pizza Parlor says a homeless man brought their attention to the dog crying in the dumpster and they called animal control. Kern County Animal Services found the dog in the dumpster at 10:41 a.m. on Tuesday, more than eight hours after she was tossed in the trash. The worker thought Rose was dead, until Rose picked her head up and whimpered. Veterinary surgeon Nicole Eller is disgusted by the video. Eller said, 'I've never lived anywhere like this before. It breaks my heart on a daily basis.' Eller said it's a clear case of animal cruelty. 'Picking a dog up, and putting it in a dumpster when it's not dead, I mean, there's nothing right about that,' said Eller. 'There's nothing right here, (as she points to her heart). That's against the law.' KCAS Director Nick Cullen stated in an email to 17 News, 'Rose was deceased upon our arrival, and she appeared to be an American Pit Bull Terrier mix. Significant blunt force trauma, the type of trauma we typically see as a result of an animal being hit by a moving vehicle, was likely what led to her death. Though immediate veterinary care may have saved her if it had been provided promptly.' Cullen said it is not known how Rose' injuries were received. 'The only way to really tell for sure would be to do a full necropsy of the animal which means an autopsy in animal terms,' said Eller. Zach Skow, founder of Marley's Mutts Dog Rescue, announces departure from organization KCAS states, if you find an injured animal in need of immediate care call animal control because officers are on call 24/7. 'I have never lived in a place like Kern County where you see the number of abandoned animals, injured animals, dumped animals, dumped puppies, dumped kittens. People need to step up, and take responsibility for their animals, and realize that they have emotions, they suffer pain…they deserve to be treated with dignity and respect,' said Eller. The worker at Rusty's Pizza Parlor who found Rose said her eyes were popped out of her skull from the impact. Cullen said she had no collar, no microchip, and KCAS named her Rose. If you know something say something, and email animalservices@ Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
09-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Debate continues over cyber charter funding as bill looks to cap payments
HARRISBURG, Pa. (WHTM) — Governor Josh Shapiro asked lawmakers to cap tuition payments to cyber charter schools, which districts have been complaining about for years. But, many students and parents have succeeded with online education and enrollment has spiked. Now, there's a new development in the fight for funding. Calls for cyber charter reform intensify after audit found ballooning revenue, surpluses 'I kind of feel like it's Groundhog Day at these hearings, to be honest with you,' State Rep. Marc Anderson (R-York). Anderson is a former public school teacher and administrator who doesn't automatically bash cyber charters for siphoning cash from public school districts. 'Start asking the question, why are so many kids going to cyber charter schools? I really haven't heard anybody answer that,' Anderson says. The more kids that go, the bigger the check school districts must write. 'We're drowning in what we're paying these cyber schools,' Rep. Joe Ciresi (D-Montgomery) said. 'Our districts are begging for reform.' He believes his bill, House Bill 1372, is providing it. The bill would cap tuition payments, currently all over the map, at $8,000. He estimates districts would save $600 million a year. Charters say it would crush them. 'We would have to seriously look at operations and have to pare back most, if not a vast majority of it,' Tim Eller, with Commonwealth Charter Academy. The bill has a new wrinkle. If a local school offers cyber learning and is approved by the Department of Education, students would have to go there. Districts wouldn't have to pay others 'They're already created,' Rep. Nikki Rivera (D-Lancaster) said. 'If your school district meets this, this, this, and you have a sound cyber charter in-house, why would our taxpayers have to pay additional for outside cyber charter?' Because, Eller would argue, enrollment suggests parents want what his cyber school is offering. 'Parents should have a right to choose where they send their children, whether it's public, nonpublic, private,' Eller said. 'The money should follow the student. Parents are taxpayers, too.' Which brings us back to the Groundhog Day debate that won't likely be ending anytime soon. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
23-04-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Firefighters are getting Western NC wildfires under control: What we know as of April 23
After several days of efforts and improved weather conditions, significant progress has been made in containment of the three wildfires burning in Western North Carolina. Two of the fires, burning in McDowell and Swain counties, are at 94% and 100% containment, respectively. The third wildfire in Nantahala National Forest remains at 29% containment, but has reportedly not grown in acreage over the past 24 hours. Here's what else we know about the three wildfires. Three large wildfires are currently burning in WNC: Bee Rock Creek Fire, McDowell County, Pisgah National Forest - 2,085 acres with 94% containment. No evacuations. Haoe Lead Fire, Graham County, Joyce Kilmer Slickrock Wilderness, Nantahala National Forest - 3,103 acres with 29% containment. No evacuations. Sam Davis Road Fire, Swain County - 559 acres with 100% containment. No evacuations. More: The lake is closed for the season. But town of Lake Lure is ready for visitors to return. See our interactive wildfire map for WNC and the region. It is updated hourly and provides information on the fires. A final update on the Bee Rock Creek Fire was posted on the U.S. Forest Service's NC Facebook page on April 23. The update said that the fire in McDowell County is currently at 2,085 acres with 94% containment. The quarter inch of rain that fell in the area over 48 hours and further rain expected on Thursday has improved weather conditions to help firefighters contain the area. The area of the Bee Rock Creek Fire between Armstrong Creek Road and the Blue Ridge Parkway remains closed for public safety. Some sections of the Blue Ridge Parkway are also closed - check the National Park Service website for details before visiting. McDowell County Emergency Management lifted an evacuation order that was in place for residences on Wild Acres Road and Wild Acres Retreat. Residents have been urged to remain cautious and aware of any ongoing firefighting operations in the area. Operations Section Chief Terry Eller gave a brief April 23 update on the Haoe Lead Fire for the Forest Service's NC Facebook page. Eller informed the public that the fire was at 3,103 acres showing 29% containment. Weather conditions have improved, with rain helping to control the fire. Throughout April 23, crews will continue to monitor the fire perimeter, looking for hotspots and addressing them. There has been no fire growth in the last 24 hours and there are currently no threats to private property. The Swain County Emergency Services Facebook page made a final update on the Sam Davis Road Fire around 7:30 a.m. on April 23. The update said that, as of April 22, the fire was 559 acres and 100% contained. On April 23, crews will continue to monitor and patrol the fire perimeter to ensure containment within established lines. Objectives remain to keep the fire west of Sam Davis Road, north of Lower Alarka Road, east of Dark Branch Road and south of Potato Hill. As of April 21, residents of Dark Branch Road were permitted to return to their homes. Evacuation orders have also been lifted for Big Rocky's Road, Sam Davis Road and Sky Cove Development. More: Officials say Lake Lure dam 'did its job' during Helene. What comes next for the century old dam? Iris Seaton is the trending news reporter for the Asheville Citizen Times, part of the USA TODAY Network. Reach her at iseaton@ This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Western North Carolina wildfires: Wildfire map, conditions improve
Yahoo
07-04-2025
- Yahoo
Former employee of Café Provence in Vermont captured after allegedly stabbing owner
BRANDON, Vt. (WWLP) – Vermont State Police arrested a man in connection with stabbing a restaurant owner in Brandon on Saturday. In a news release by the Vermont State Police, troopers were looking for 32-year-old Jozef I. Eller of Hancock, a former employee of Café Provence. He allegedly entered the restaurant at around 4:30 p.m. on Saturday and attacked the chef/owner, 71-year-old Robert Barral of Brandon. After the assault, State Police say Eller drove away heading north on Route 7 in a white 2017 Ford F-150 pickup truck. The victim was taken to Rutland Regional Medical Center and is expected to survive. Springfield man charged for DUI following crash in Vermont State Police posted on social media, warning the public of the search and that Eller was considered extremely dangerous and to call 911 if they see him. He was described as 5'8″ tall, 170 pounds, with brown hair and brown eyes. They shared the following photos: At around 10:10 p.m. State Police located Eller and took him into custody. He is being held without bail on charges of attempted second-degree murder and trespassing. WWLP-22News, an NBC affiliate, began broadcasting in March 1953 to provide local news, network, syndicated, and local programming to western Massachusetts. Watch the 22News Digital Edition weekdays at 4 p.m. on Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
