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Mark Scheifele couldnâ€t have asked for a better start to this season.

Over the weekend, Scheifele surpassed mentor Blake Wheeler as the Winnipeg Jets†all-time points leader. On Monday, he scored for the fifth consecutive game in Winnipegâ€s win against the Calgary Flames — his longest goal streak since February 2022.

And to top it all off, the Jets, who won the Presidents†Trophy last season with 116 points, are back near the top of the standings after winning five in a row.

“Heâ€s been such a consistent player,†Jets coach Scott Arniel told reporters after Scheifele broke Wheelerâ€s record. “He has such great offensive skills and instincts.â€

Scheifele, 32, is out to prove that his 39 goals and career-high 87 points last season were not an outlier (and that he deserves a spot on Team Canada at the Winter Olympics). Truthfully, it will be difficult for him to continue scoring on 26.9 per cent of his shot attempts — more than double his rate from last season (11.9 per cent). But he is getting to the high-danger scoring areas far more frequently, which could allow him to maintain his inflated shooting percentage for a little longer.

Roughly 80 per cent of Scheifeleâ€s shot attempts (21 of 26) have come from the slot. Only Montrealâ€s Juraj Slafkovsky (82.8 per cent) has taken a higher percentage of his shots from the slot out of the 144 forwards with at least 20 attempts this season. (Last season, 64.2 per cent of Scheifeleâ€s shot attempts came from the slot, leading to 33 of his 39 goals.)

After netting the game-winning goal against the Flames on Monday, Scheifele credited his linemates, Kyle Connor and Gabriel Vilardi, for helping to spark his blazing-hot start. Winnipeg has outscored its opponents 5-2 at 5-on-5 over the 69-plus minutes when its top line has been on the ice. Connor has been setting up Scheifele exquisitely, feeding him on all three of his one-timer goals.

Connor, Scheifele and Vilardi have picked up where they left off last season, when they formed the highest-scoring line in the NHL with 50 on-ice goals at 5-on-5. But it is worth noting that they have not dominated territorially. The Jets have generated 44.6 per cent of the expected goals at 5-on-5 during the top lineâ€s minutes, compared to 51.5 per cent a season ago.

Collectively, the Jets have a 37.2 xGF% at 5-on-5, including a league-worst 8.06 expected goals for (1.81 per 60 minutes). Scheifeleâ€s goal-scoring frenzy has helped prop up the Jets, as has the play of reigning Hart Trophy winner Connor Hellebuyck, who has already stolen three games this season based on the number of goals he has saved above expected. Hellebuyck has recorded steals in each of his past two starts, saving a combined six goals above expected against the Flames and Nashville Predators.

Most of Hellebuyckâ€s best work has been done on the penalty kill, where he has saved 6.6 of his league-leading 9.5 goals above expected. That is why Winnipeg has stopped a league-best 96.3 per cent of opposing power plays despite ranking 26th in shorthanded shot quality against per two minutes.

“When you have (Hellebuyck) in net or (Eric Comrie), you trust in those guys so much,†said Scheifele, who is averaging a career-high 1:18 of shorthanded ice time per game. “Iâ€m still getting used to it. Thereâ€s still some bad reads that I make out there and (have) got to clean up.â€

It isnâ€t easy following up on a Presidents†Trophy season. Since 2005-06 (excluding shortened seasons), the winners of that award have averaged around a 15-point decline the year after finishing atop the league standings.

The Jets†good fortune is bound to run out eventually, but the good news is that critical reinforcements are on the way in the form of key defensive forward/captain Adam Lowry, top-six winger Cole Perfetti and top-four defenceman Dylan Samberg. All three will bolster the Jets†lineup. In the meantime, Winnipeg will continue to lean on Scheifele and Hellebuyck as the team banks points that could prove critical come April.

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It’s been almost three months since the Pittsburgh Penguins selected Benjamin Kindel with the No. 11 overall pick in the 2025 NHL Draft.

Kindel was one of the top players in the entire CHL last year, finishing with 35 goals and 99 points in 64 games with the WHL’s Calgary Hitmen. He’s a really underrated goal scorer and has great vision in the offensive zone, but the best aspect of his game is his hockey IQ. He’s always out-thinking the opposition while he’s on the ice and is always in the right position.

He got to play in the Penguins’ first two preseason games and was noticeable in both. He showcased his skating during Monday’s game against the Montreal Canadiens and got a few good chances against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Wednesday, including a breakaway, but couldn’t find the back of the net.

Even though Kindel is expected to play for the Hitmen again this season, he may have earned himself another preseason game after his efforts on Wednesday. He’s also really enjoying training camp thus far and found the first skate last Thursday to be “very competitive.”

“Yeah, first day, I think it’s a great environment,” Kindel said. “A lot of great leaders and older guys showing the young guys how to work, and I think it was a very competitive first skate, and it was a lot of fun.”

Kindel isn’t the only player to describe this year’s camp as competitive. Just ask Penguins captain Sidney Crosby.

“I thought the pace of practice was really good, and a lot of competition within that, so that’s what you expect from training camp,” Crosby said after the September 18 practice.

Kindel is also super impressed with Muse and the rest of the Penguins’ coaching staff.

Training Camp Proves Penguins Have More Talent Than You Realize
When Kyle Dubas took over as president of hockey operations – and, eventually, general manager – of the Pittsburgh Penguins in the summer of 2023, the prospect pool looked quite different than it does now.

“I’m really excited to continue working with them. They seem like great coaches and great people. They want to see all of us do our best, and try and get the best out of all of us, so I’m really excited to keep working with them,” Kindel said.

Kindel will be at Penguins’ training camp for another practice on Friday as they get set for back-to-back preseason games. He won’t be in the lineup against the Detroit Red Wings on Friday, which could be a sign that he will play on Saturday against the Columbus Blue Jackets.

It would be pretty big for Kindel to play in that game since it’s expected that a lot of the Penguins’ top players will play due to Marc-Andre Fleury’s return. Kindel may not be ready for the NHL yet, but his time is coming.

Bookmark THN – Pittsburgh Penguins on your Google News tab  to follow the latest Penguins news, roster moves, player features, and more!

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Image credit:
Danny Graves (Photo by Aaron Doster/Getty Images)

Danny Graves arrived at the University of Miami in the fall of 1991 as an undersized righthander surrounded by a deep recruiting class of standout arms and wondering what heâ€d gotten himself into.

“Not that I had any lack of confidence, but (what are) the odds for a little freshman—I looked like I was about 12, and I was a little chubby,†Graves said. “I canâ€t believe that I signed to go here, and all these pitchers are here. Turtle Thomas, our recruiting coordinator back then, was infamous for doing that, bringing in a lot of arms and seeing what sticks. And, thankfully, I stuck.â€

Graves did more than stick. He cemented himself as a mainstay in the Miami bullpen from day one, posting a 0.89 ERA with 21 saves as the Hurricanes’ closer on their 1994 College World Series-bound team.

Just three years removed from wondering if he could stick at Miami, Graves was at the top of his game. He had set himself up to vault into pro baseball, as the Indians selected him with their fourth-round pick in the 1994 draft, and he arrived in Omaha looking to end his college career with a bang.

Instead, he tore his ACL during the College World Series, throwing that future in doubt.

“The first thing I thought was, ‘There goes all the money,â€â€ Graves said. “At the time, I was
thinking I might have to go back to school.â€

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His fears wouldnâ€t come to pass, however, as the Indians honored Graves†pre-injury bonus request. They were quickly rewarded. Graves was just as lights out in the minor leagues as he was at Miami, and he debuted with the big league club in 1996 before being flipped to the Reds in a trade deadline deal as a part of the package for Jeff Branson and John Smiley.

Graves took his lumps early in his big league career, learning that he needed more than just good life on his pitches to get MLB hitters out.

“I felt like for so long I would get by with stuff,†Graves said. “When people donâ€t see a lot of you,
especially in the minor leagues, your stuff can dominate for a little while. When you get to the
big leagues, you need more than just stuff.â€

Graves set about not just fine-tuning his arsenal, but learning how to effectively use it. By his age-25 season, heâ€d earned the Reds’ closer job and made his first all-star team in 2000 at age 26. Even with the ACL setback in college, the game had brought Graves nothing but joy, and he relished shutting things down in the ninth.

However, in 2003, Graves’ toughest professional year coincided with his toughest year off the field.

“I was going through a divorce at the time,” Graves said. “Itâ€s really hard to have a family when youâ€re a big league player. People think itâ€s all glory because you make a lot of money, but you have a family because you love your family and you want to be with your family. When theyâ€re not with you all the time, you get lonely.â€

Things at home were difficult, and after being converted to a starter by Reds management,
things on the mound werenâ€t much better. Years of elite performance in the bullpen were replaced
by a season of struggling in the rotation.

“I would have some good starts, but then have one or two bad innings that just blew stuff out of
proportion,†Graves said. “I went back to the bullpen the next year and made the all-star team,
but it still wasnâ€t fun. It was a struggle to pitch.â€

By 2007, Graves was on the wrong side of 30, pitching with diminished stuff for the independent
Long Island Ducks. He was a long way from being a big league all-star, but unwilling to let go of being a
professional baseball player.

“Thatâ€s what my identity was in my eyes,” Graves said. “I was nothing else but a baseball player. What happens if I donâ€t play anymore? If I say no to the Long Island Ducks, then Iâ€m not going to
play, and then what am I? Who am I? Thatâ€s why I kept trying to play, even knowing in the back of my
mind I had no shot of getting back to the big leagues.â€

After stints in the minor leagues and with Navojoa of the Mexican League, Graves walked away
from baseball, leaving behind the game and any joy associated with it.

“I took a couple years away from the game completely,” Graves said. “I was just a dad at home. I got
remarried to a wonderful lady. I wanted nothing to do with baseball.â€

That mightâ€ve been it for Graves and the game he loved—if baseball hadnâ€t come back for him.

Graves was approached about broadcasting, an opportunity he has since parlayed into stints with Reds Radio Network and his current role calling ACC baseball for ESPN. With a new job behind the mic instead of on the mound, it allowed Graves to find an identity in the game that had nothing to do with getting hitters out.

“All of a sudden, I get this opportunity to get back in the game on the media side,†Graves said.
“And thatâ€s when I knew, ‘Now I can be a former player and be ok with it.’â€

In the broadcast booth, Graves has rediscovered the baseball joy from his Miami and early Reds days. In 2023, he capped both journeys on a high note, going back to complete his Miami degree
and being inducted into the Reds Hall of Fame the same year.

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Former UFC champion Ronda Rousey walked away from MMA nearly a decade ago, but it sounds like she’s rediscovering her passion for the sport.

Rousey posted a video on Instagram showcasing her progress since returning to MMA training after giving birth to her daughter in January, and she wrote in the caption that she’s fallen back in love with the grind.

“From 8 weeks after having a baby and 8 years of stepping away from MMA to 8 months postpartum and finding my love for it again,” Rousey wrote in the caption.

The 38-year-old admitted that she was self-conscious about her diminished skills since stepping away from MMA following her loss to Amanda Nunes in 2016 and experiencing her current postpartum issues. However, she said her joy for the sport has returned over the past few months.

“The first clip is my first session working with @aj_mma I was super self conscious, embarrassed of how much I regressed, and honestly trying my very best not to pee my pants throwing punches so soon after having baby PÄ’Å«,” Rousey stated. “Second clip was yesterday, I’ve never laughed or smiled so much on the mat as I do these days. The last 6 months have been an absolute blast, feels like I have so much left to grow, and without the weight of the world on my shoulders nothing is holding me back.”

Rousey’s revelation comes amid the UFC’s announced plans for an event at the White House in 2026. The company recently released the first renderings to show what the event would look like.

Rousey even caught the attention of former rival Cris Cyborg, who expressed interest in finally settling their differences in a fight:

It remains to be seen if Rousey’s return to training will lead to an official fight, but the UFC undoubtedly would move mountains to get her back into the Octagon if she’s interested. The White House card would be the biggest spectacle for her potential return.

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