Latest news with #Great8
RTÉ News
07-05-2025
- Entertainment
- RTÉ News
Irish film selected for prestigious showcase at Cannes
The Irish film Learning to Breathe Under Water has been officially selected for the prestigious Great 8 showcase at the upcoming Cannes Film Festival. Directed by Rebekah Fortune (Just Charlie), it stars Rory Kinnear (James Bond, Men, The Imitation Game) and Academy Award-nominee Maria Bakalova (Borat Subsequent Moviefilm, The Apprentice, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3). The film, made in Galway last year, introduces rising Irish talent Ezra Carlisle in his first major screen role. The selection marks a significant milestone for the film, which will be presented to international buyers and festival programmers as part of the exclusive Great 8 spotlight - an initiative that has previously launched acclaimed titles such as Charlotte Wells' Aftersun, Rose Glass's Saint Maud, and Rich Peppiatt's Kneecap. Written by Richard Brabin, the film follows eight-year-old Leo (Carlisle) - curious, wise and full of imagination. His best friend is a massive shark - half sculpture, half myth - that crashed through the roof of his house one night when his dad, Peter (Kinnear), gave shape to what he couldn't say out loud. Leo's world is full of questions: why do grown-ups act so strangely? Where did Mum go five years ago? And will Dad ever come down from the clouds - or at least remember to do the shopping? Peter's either buried in big, bonkers art projects or barely speaking, so Leo daydreams vividly and shares his secrets with the shark, who might just be listening but can't speak back. Then Anya (Bakalova) bursts into their lives: a spirited au pair with her own questions to shatter the silence and answers more honest than Leo has ever heard before. Her fearless warmth and energy brings back colour to their world and uplifts their lives. The Great 8 showcase is produced by the BFI and British Council, with thanks to BBC Film and Film4. The film will be available for acquisition at the Cannes Marché du Film, with international sales handled by Bankside Films. Learning to Breathe Under Water is produced by Patrick O'Neill for Wildcard and Jack Tarling for Shudder Films, in co-production with KeyFilm and One Wave Films, and in association with Éiru Films. The project was supported by Fís Éireann/Screen Ireland, the UK Global Screen Fund, Ffilm Cymru Wales, the WRAP Fund, the Netherlands Film Fund, Dias Feld, Finite Films, Bankside Films, and Three Point Capital.
Time of India
22-04-2025
- Sport
- Time of India
Alex Ovechkin in game 1 shining, young Ivan Demidov cracking under pressure
Image Via Twitter An exhilarating Game 1 was played in the first round of the series between the Washington Capitals and Montreal Canadiens, and Alex Ovechkin demonstrated the ability to stake a claim at least for one moment in time on the ice. Ovechkin's brilliant performance, capped by an overtime goal , dashed the Montreal Canadiens ' hopes of a comeback and constituted a defining moment of the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs. The night was momentous for the newcomer Ivan Demidov , the latest Russian prospect, who faced his first test against the veteran Ovechkin, after previously making waves by stating his admiration for Evgeni Malkin over the likes of Ovechkin. Alex Ovechkin dwarfed Ivan Demidov in the playoffs A night when youth was not served; 39-year-old Alex Ovechkin proved to the world that he is still the undisputed captain of the Washington Capitals. It was Ovechkin's leadership that kept the team in the fight, while the Washington Capitals beat Montreal 4-3 in overtime. His final score was two goals, one assist, and a flurry of big hits. His sudden-death overtime goal became the first in his storied playoff career. Young Ivan Demidov, 22 years of age and gaining recognition for his talent, was under intense scrutiny during his first playoff game. Even though he possessed tons of potential, Demidov was able to play for just 11:57 minutes on the ice. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like How to integrate next-generation AI securely and ethically - The Agentic Revolution CIO | Salesforce Undo Ovechkin sent out ripples through the hockey world reminding everyone the Great 8 is far from done. In the hours leading up to the game, Demidov made headlines when he commented that he would take Malkin over Ovechkin. Ovechkin likely took that to heart and found a few extra minutes to settle accounts with Demidov through physical play, gently reminding him of the pecking order. The reality of being in the NHL's most prestigious tournament settled in for Demidov. The chances he got to showcase his talent were very few, and throughout the game, it was the presence of Ovechkin that took center stage. What happens with Demidov in the following games depends on how head coach Martin St. Louis views him. Nonetheless, one thing is certain: any success the rookie hopes to achieve in the league will demand stepping up against giants like Ovechkin. Looking to game 2: Ovechkin on strong ground with the capitals The leadership and skill of Alex Ovechkin were put on full blast during Game 1, and in Game 2, the Capitals look to go on from strength to strength in the series. As for Ivan Demidov, this first playoff experience will only help him develop, but right now, legendary status is reserved completely for Ovechkin. Challenges are bound to come Demidov's way as the series progresses, and how he deals with them will, in some sense, define his life in the NHL. Also Read: Alex Ovechkin, the Greatest Of All Time, sets the tone, and the Washington Capitals boys follow it This brings us to the end, Alex Ovechkin reaffirmed himself as one of the few ever to play the game. A tough outing for Ivan Demidov, but definitely a worthwhile learning experience for the young Russian star. Get the latest IPL 2025 updates on Times of India , including match schedules , team squads , points table and IPL live score for CSK , MI , RCB , KKR , SRH , LSG , DC , GT , PBKS , and RR . Don't miss the list of players in the race for IPL Orange Cap and IPL Purple cap .
Forbes
22-04-2025
- Sport
- Forbes
Ovechkin Scores First Playoff OT Goal In Capitals' Win Over Canadiens
Alex Ovechkin's OT goals gave the Capitals a Game 1 playoff victory over the Montreal Canadiens. ... More (Photo by) This is clearly the year of Alex Ovechkin. The NHL's all-time goal scorer had done it all in his career – with the exception of scoring an overtime in the Stanley Cup playoffs. Seconds after ESPN announcers Sean McDonough and Ray Ferraro emphasized that point, the Great 8 put that statistic in the rear-view mirror as he scored 2:26 into overtime and gave the Washington Capitals a 3-2 triumph in Game 1 of their playoff series against the Montreal Canadiens. Ovechkin gets high marks for ending the game with his game-winner. He went right to the front of the net and took a slick pass from Anthony Beauvillier while the puck was still in the air and deflecting it by Montreal goaltender Sam Montembeault. The Capitals took advantage of a matchup that saw the Canadiens have a player on the ice competing in his third career game. Russian phenom Ivan Demidov had just joined the Habs, and the 19-year-old was on the ice for a defensive draw, as was offensive minded Patrik Laine. The Caps smelled Montreal's vulnerability and Ovechkin quickly took advantage. While the Canadiens dropped the series opener, there was plenty for the Eastern Conference's No. 8 seed to feel good about. The Capitals had built a 2-0 lead and held it midway through the third period, but the visitors did not weaken. Young stars Cole Caufield and Nick Suzuki scored to tie the score for the Habs and propel the game into the extra session. Montreal head coach Martin St. Louis has much to build on prior to Game 2 of the series Wednesday night. 'We spent more time in the O-zone and we get better as the game went on,' St. Louis said, per 'I feel like in terms of what we tried to do out there tonight, I felt it was a pretty good first game. There was a lot of good stuff.' Slick Mitch Marner has the skill and quickness the Maple Leafs need in the Stanley Cup playoffs. ... More (Photo by) The emotions were also flowing in the battle of Ontario between the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Ottawa Senators Sunday night. The Maple Leafs took advantage of an off-night from Senators goalie Linus Ullmark and Ottawa's lack of discipline to dominate Game 1 of the series by a 6-2 margin. The high-powered Leafs have to be relieved that they don't have to face the Boston Bruins in the opening round because that team has eliminated the Leafs in the first round of the playoffs so many times. Toronto jumped on the Sens behind stars Mitch Marner, William Nylander and John Tavares. All three scored goals and while Auston Matthews did not have a marker, he did have a pair of assists. Three of the Maple Leafs goals were power play scores as the Sens were taking careless penalties throughout. They are clearly a team that lacks Stanley Cup experience and did not know how to hold on to their discipline. There is little doubt that head coach Travis Green has emphasized that his players have to learn from their mistakes and not give the Maple Leafs man-advantage opportunities. "It's a fine line," Green said, per Dave McCarthy of "Playoff hockey is emotional and competitive. I like to think we have a physical team and yet there is a fine line between crossing the line and taking penalties." The Carolina Hurricanes jumped on an injured New Jersey Devils team in the first game of their Eastern Conference playoff series and rolled to a 4-1 victory. The Devils may have a chance when the series moves to Newark for Game 3, but they appeared to be overwhelmed in Raleigh. The Hurricanes outshot the Devils 44-24 in the game and Carolina had a 34-9 advantage at one point in the second period. Logan Stankoven had two goals for the Canes, and the Devils will have a hard time matching Carolina's offense without injured center Jack Hughes in the lineup. The defending Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers will finally begin their playoff run when they travel to Tampa for Game 1 against the Lightning Tuesday night. These in-state rivals have become Stanley Cup Finals regulars. The Lighting won two of three finals appearances from 2020 through 2022, while the Panthers have been to the last two Stanley Cup Finals, winning in seven games last year against Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers. This is a series between two rivals that despise each other. The recent addition of agitator Brad Marchand to the Florida lineup will make this intense series burn even hotter than usual.
Yahoo
08-04-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
‘Great One' Gretzky and ‘Great 8' Ovechkin: Great goal-scorers and completely different players
NEW YORK — The only player in NHL history who has been teammates with Wayne Gretzky and Alex Ovechkin chuckled. Mike Knuble loves the stat that Gretzky has more assists than any other hockey player has points. Advertisement 'If he didn't score a goal, he'd still be leading everybody in points,' Knuble said. 'That's crazy.' Now, Ovechkin has more goals after breaking Gretzky's record by scoring the 895th of his career Sunday, putting the 'Great 8' ahead of the 'Great One' in terms of putting the puck in the net. But Gretzky's dominance through the high-scoring 1980s and into the '90s was more about playmaking and setting others up, while Ovechkin entered the league in 2005 during a new era of rule changes that opened the door for more offense and earned the record as a hard-shooting pure scorer who affected the sport in different ways. 'Wayne, the way he changed his game was by his thinking: just the turn-ups, the delaying, kind of evolving the game into a little bit more of a thinking man's game and figure out how to capitalize the area behind the net, really use that to his advantage,' said Knuble, who played a combined 1,133 NHL regular-season and playoff games from 1997-2013. 'Alex is just straightforward like, 'I'm just going to go around you, I'm going through you or however to get this puck in the net.' Two different styles.' Reigning Stanley Cup-winning coach Paul Maurice opined, 'They're completely different styles of play: completely different players, other than what an incredible record.' Advertisement By the time Maurice started coaching in the NHL in the mid-'90s, Gretzky and Mario Lemieux were on the downside of their careers, and Ovechkin was nearly a decade from starting his. Teams turned to clutching, grabbing, hooking and holding to slow down skilled stars such as Gretzky. 'Gretzky made the game offensively so much more dynamic,' said St. Louis Blues coach Jim Montgomery, who played a few NHL seasons against Gretzky as well as one game in Russia against Ovechkin. 'That led to real more defensive-minded approach by a lot of coaches: How do we stop these delays? How do we stop Gretzky behind the net, so the game got better offensively and then it got better significantly defensively.' From a height of 8.02 goals a game in 1981-82, when Gretzky set the single-season record with 92, the so-called dead puck era hit its nadir in 2003-04 at 5.14. The Washington Capitals won the draft lottery that spring — 21 years to the day of Ovechkin scoring No. 895 — but a lockout wiped out the entire next season, bringing with it a salary cap and better enforcement of penalties that encouraged scoring with extra room for skating and creativity and more power plays. Advertisement 'The game opened for most things, and I think that created the opportunity for a great player to come in and challenge the record,' said Maurice, who has coached the second-most games in NHL history behind the legendary Scotty Bowman. 'If the game doesn't change, you wouldn't have seen somebody challenge Wayne Gretzky's record.' Ovechkin has scored a record 325 power-play goals. Gretzky has the most at even strength with 617 and 73 short-handed. 'Ovechkin is the best goal-scorer ever,' said Hall of Famer Teemu Selanne, who's 12th on the career goals list with 684. 'I don't think a lot of people would consider Gretzky as a goal-scorer, really. He has 894 goals. It's unbelievable. And he still has 1,000 points more than No. 2 on the scoring list, so those are sick numbers.' Technically 936 more than second-place Jaromir Jagr and 714 more assists than Ron Francis. Gretzky's 2,857 points and 1,963 assists are records are far more untouchable than his goal mark ever was. Advertisement Gretzky was also so influential that he made the league rewrite part of its rulebook. His teams were too good at 4 on 4 with more ice to work with that each team taking a penalty no longer led to that, and the play remained 5 on 5. Goaltenders also geared up more along the way, adding padding as stick technology improved and shots got harder and faster. It got more difficult to score, yet Ovechkin still did it more than anyone else. 'It's so hard,' Gretzky said. 'I don't care what era you play in: '50s, '60s, '70s, '80s, it's hard to score goals. Good for him. Players are better today. The equipment's better. The coaching's better. But that's the progression in our game.' The game also got faster and more physical — not fighting, exactly, but bigger and stronger players dishing out bone-crushing hits. And unlike so many of his Soviet predecessors, Ovechkin was not fancy and finesse. Advertisement 'You think of the great Russian players — Pavel Bure, Alexander Mogilny, Sergei Fedorov, Artemi Panarin, Kirill Kaprizov — all of these guys are beautiful skaters with great passing, and they're the chess players that you expect from Russia,' said Steven Warshaw, a marketing executive who lived and worked in Moscow for the Pittsburgh Penguins in the 1990s when they invested in a team there. 'Whereas Ovechkin is more like Bamm-Bamm from the 'Flintstones.' He's got his 100 mph slap shot. He's a brutal player. He defines power forward. He is clearly a machine.' Trying to stop Ovechkin the machine and Gretzky over his career that overlapped theirs, Mike Grier acknowledged one was a physical battle and the other more mental. Gretzky, Lemieux and their ilk were always thinking two steps ahead, while Ovechkin was two steps from laying out a big hit or sniping a shot into the top corner. 'It was kind of a different job when you checked them versus someone like Ovechkin,' said Grier, now general manager of the San Jose Sharks. 'Ovi, you have an idea where he's going to be and he'll engage in the physical game with you a little bit. I think that sometimes gets him going. But that was the challenge: He could physically take over games and be hard on you and your defensemen, but I think Wayne and those guys, they were just so smart that you think you had a lane covered or something and they'd find the next option.' Advertisement Rick Tocchet, who played against and coached with Gretzky and has been on the other bench facing Ovechkin during several playoff series over the years, thinks physicality is a big reason why Ovechkin broke the record. 'People are like, yeah, he's a great goal-scorer, but this guy's made some big hits in his career that's loosened up those goals,' said Tocchet, now coach of the Vancouver Caucks. 'That's why he gets those goals because the next thing you know, the (defensemen) are not going as hard and they lose him and he gets those slot shots and he scores on a million shots around the net, too, because he's not afraid to go in front of the net.' But is it harder to score goals during Ovechkin's time than Gretzky's? Tocchet isn't sure. Knuble is well aware that changes in equipment, goalies and more make it difficult, if not impossible to compare the two, and he and others around the sport prefer to appreciate the varying degrees of greatness. 'It's a little different era,' Selanne said, 'but getting close to 900 goals like Ovechkin right now, it's remarkable.'
NBC Sports
08-04-2025
- Sport
- NBC Sports
‘Great One' Gretzky and ‘Great 8' Ovechkin: Great goal-scorers and completely different players
NEW YORK — The only player in NHL history who has been teammates with Wayne Gretzky and Alex Ovechkin chuckled. Mike Knuble loves the stat that Gretzky has more assists than any other hockey player has points. 'If he didn't score a goal, he'd still be leading everybody in points,' Knuble said. 'That's crazy.' Now, Ovechkin has more goals after breaking Gretzky's record by scoring the 895th of his career Sunday, putting the 'Great 8' ahead of the 'Great One' in terms of putting the puck in the net. But Gretzky's dominance through the high-scoring 1980s and into the '90s was more about playmaking and setting others up, while Ovechkin entered the league in 2005 during a new era of rule changes that opened the door for more offense and earned the record as a hard-shooting pure scorer who affected the sport in different ways. 'Wayne, the way he changed his game was by his thinking: just the turn-ups, the delaying, kind of evolving the game into a little bit more of a thinking man's game and figure out how to capitalize the area behind the net, really use that to his advantage,' said Knuble, who played a combined 1,133 NHL regular-season and playoff games from 1997-2013. 'Alex is just straightforward like, 'I'm just going to go around you, I'm going through you or however to get this puck in the net.' Two different styles.' Reigning Stanley Cup-winning coach Paul Maurice opined, 'They're completely different styles of play: completely different players, other than what an incredible record.' By the time Maurice started coaching in the NHL in the mid-'90s, Gretzky and Mario Lemieux were on the downside of their careers, and Ovechkin was nearly a decade from starting his. Teams turned to clutching, grabbing, hooking and holding to slow down skilled stars such as Gretzky. 'Gretzky made the game offensively so much more dynamic,' said St. Louis Blues coach Jim Montgomery, who played a few NHL seasons against Gretzky as well as one game in Russia against Ovechkin. 'That led to real more defensive-minded approach by a lot of coaches: How do we stop these delays? How do we stop Gretzky behind the net, so the game got better offensively and then it got better significantly defensively.' From a height of 8.02 goals a game in 1981-82, when Gretzky set the single-season record with 92, the so-called dead puck era hit its nadir in 2003-04 at 5.14. The Washington Capitals won the draft lottery that spring — 21 years to the day of Ovechkin scoring No. 895 — but a lockout wiped out the entire next season, bringing with it a salary cap and better enforcement of penalties that encouraged scoring with extra room for skating and creativity and more power plays. 'The game opened for most things, and I think that created the opportunity for a great player to come in and challenge the record,' said Maurice, who has coached the second-most games in NHL history behind the legendary Scotty Bowman. 'If the game doesn't change, you wouldn't have seen somebody challenge Wayne Gretzky's record.' Ovechkin has scored a record 325 power-play goals. Gretzky has the most at even strength with 617 and 73 short-handed. 'Ovechkin is the best goal-scorer ever,' said Hall of Famer Teemu Selanne, who's 12th on the career goals list with 684. 'I don't think a lot of people would consider Gretzky as a goal-scorer, really. He has 894 goals. It's unbelievable. And he still has 1,000 points more than No. 2 on the scoring list, so those are sick numbers.' Technically 936 more than second-place Jaromir Jagr and 714 more assists than Ron Francis. Gretzky's 2,857 points and 1,963 assists are records are far more untouchable than his goal mark ever was. Gretzky was also so influential that he made the league rewrite part of its rulebook. His teams were too good at 4 on 4 with more ice to work with that each team taking a penalty no longer led to that, and the play remained 5 on 5. Goaltenders also geared up more along the way, adding padding as stick technology improved and shots got harder and faster. It got more difficult to score, yet Ovechkin still did it more than anyone else. 'It's so hard,' Gretzky said. 'I don't care what era you play in: '50s, '60s, '70s, '80s, it's hard to score goals. Good for him. Players are better today. The equipment's better. The coaching's better. But that's the progression in our game.' The game also got faster and more physical — not fighting, exactly, but bigger and stronger players dishing out bone-crushing hits. And unlike so many of his Soviet predecessors, Ovechkin was not fancy and finesse. 'You think of the great Russian players — Pavel Bure, Alexander Mogilny, Sergei Fedorov, Artemi Panarin, Kirill Kaprizov — all of these guys are beautiful skaters with great passing, and they're the chess players that you expect from Russia,' said Steven Warshaw, a marketing executive who lived and worked in Moscow for the Pittsburgh Penguins in the 1990s when they invested in a team there. 'Whereas Ovechkin is more like Bamm-Bamm from the 'Flintstones.' He's got his 100 mph slap shot. He's a brutal player. He defines power forward. He is clearly a machine.' Trying to stop Ovechkin the machine and Gretzky over his career that overlapped theirs, Mike Grier acknowledged one was a physical battle and the other more mental. Gretzky, Lemieux and their ilk were always thinking two steps ahead, while Ovechkin was two steps from laying out a big hit or sniping a shot into the top corner. 'It was kind of a different job when you checked them versus someone like Ovechkin,' said Grier, now general manager of the San Jose Sharks. 'Ovi, you have an idea where he's going to be and he'll engage in the physical game with you a little bit. I think that sometimes gets him going. But that was the challenge: He could physically take over games and be hard on you and your defensemen, but I think Wayne and those guys, they were just so smart that you think you had a lane covered or something and they'd find the next option.' Rick Tocchet, who played against and coached with Gretzky and has been on the other bench facing Ovechkin during several playoff series over the years, thinks physicality is a big reason why Ovechkin broke the record. 'People are like, yeah, he's a great goal-scorer, but this guy's made some big hits in his career that's loosened up those goals,' said Tocchet, now coach of the Vancouver Caucks. 'That's why he gets those goals because the next thing you know, the (defensemen) are not going as hard and they lose him and he gets those slot shots and he scores on a million shots around the net, too, because he's not afraid to go in front of the net.' But is it harder to score goals during Ovechkin's time than Gretzky's? Tocchet isn't sure. Knuble is well aware that changes in equipment, goalies and more make it difficult, if not impossible to compare the two, and he and others around the sport prefer to appreciate the varying degrees of greatness. 'It's a little different era,' Selanne said, 'but getting close to 900 goals like Ovechkin right now, it's remarkable.'
