The New England Patriots are expecting a big second season from quarterback Mac Jones after he returned to the team "in the best shape of his life".

In his rookie 2021 season, former Alabama QB Jones led the Patriots back to the playoffs with a 10-7 record.

Starting all 17 regular season games, he threw for 3,801 yards, 22 touchdowns and 13 interceptions.

Selected 15th overall in the 2021 NFL Draft, Jones was the standout performer among the rookie QBs, although his season ended in a blowout 47-17 defeat to NFC East rivals the Buffalo Bills in the postseason.

The Patriots head into 2022 without long-time offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels, who has been named head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders, but Jones appears set for another big year.

"He's in the best shape of his life," receiver Kendrick Bourne said of Jones. "He looks really good. His stomach is gone.

"When you're a rookie, you just don't know it until you go through it for a year. So, he's definitely a lot more in shape than he ever was, just dominating in conditioning. It's dope to see."

Jones explained: "I just cleaned up my diet. I've learned more this offseason than I probably ever have about nutrition, sleep, wellness, all that stuff.

"At the same time, I need to be able to maintain my weight and be able to take hits. There's a fine balance for every player.

"I've definitely trimmed down on the body fat, and I'll get a chance to bulk up before the season starts and be able to absorb hits."

Nazem Kadri scored a decisive hat-trick for the Colorado Avalanche against the St. Louis Blues in Game 4, having been determined to perform after alleging threats and racist abuse.

Avalanche center Kadri was involved in a collision with Jordan Binnington in Game 3, bringing a premature end to the Blues goaltender's series.

Former NHL player Akim Aliu revealed on Twitter on Sunday he had subsequently spoken to Kadri, who he said had "been subject to so many racist attacks and threats since last night that police had to be brought in".

The Avalanche confirmed they were aware of threats made towards their player – a Muslim of Lebanese descent – and were working with local law enforcement to investigate.

In the meantime, Kadri responded on the ice with three goals in Monday's 6-3 win to put the Avalanche 3-1 up and on the brink of the Western Conference Finals.

"I wanted to come out tonight and really put a mark on this game, especially after what happened," Kadri said. "I tried to do that as best as possible.

"Sometimes you've got to be patient, and you've got to wait. I was able to strike early in the second period and was able to get the mojo going."

He added of the incidents: "People need to be aware this stuff still happens, and it's hurtful."

Speaking ahead of Game 4, Blues coach Craig Berube – who had questioned Kadri's role in Binnington's injury, referencing his "reputation" in an apparent nod to previous postseason suspensions – said of the threats: "I've got no comment on that stuff."

Erik Spoelstra has no doubt the Miami Heat can inflict the sort of brutal defeat that the Boston Celtics doled out in Game 4 as the Eastern Conference Finals heads towards its climax.

A 102-82 loss in Boston on Monday night came on the back of Miami scoring a trifling 11 points in the first quarter, with Jimmy Butler scoring just six points all night and no Heat starter reaching double figures.

The visitors shot just 33.3 per cent from the field (30 of 90), with Boston's win squaring the series at 2-2 and setting up Game 5 in Miami on Wednesday evening as a pivotal occasion.

Coach Spoelstra said: "More than anything, our offense really hurt us at the beginning. They weren't getting the sort of purposeful execution that you need to on the road. [Boston] were able to get some relief points from that and get to the free-throw line. They did a better job of getting into us and rotating guys into the paint."

It was 57-33 by the halfway mark, and Spoelstra admitted the Heat simply failed to ignite. Yet he says Miami can swiftly set the game aside and dominate the next time the teams meet on court, saying it would not surprise him if the tables are turned.

"We've got guys that love these kinds of moments, the playoffs. You've just got to stay together," Spoelstra said.

"This is part of the playoffs. There are these extreme highs and lows, a lot of emotion. You just have to stay the course, stay together. What you're looking at is a great series. It's 2-2. You have to embrace that. Hopefully this competition beings out the absolute best in all of us.

"They got the best of us tonight. We'll take this hit and then get to Miami and get ready for Game 5. Whatever they have done to us, we can do to them."

Jayson Tatum led Boston with 31 points. The Celtics led by 32 points at one stage before Miami began to claw back the deficit late on.

"We're not making any excuses. They outplayed us tonight, for sure," said Spoelstra.

Jayson Tatum never doubted himself after a poor Game 3 performance, returning to a starring role as the Boston Celtics dominated the Miami Heat 102-82 in Game 4.

The Celtics had their backs to the wall in the latest tussle of the Eastern Conference Finals, with the threat of heading back to Miami for Game 5 trailing 3-1, but they made sure it was not a nervous night for the Boston faithful.

Derrick White – returning to the starting line-up after the birth of his son – started in place of the injured Marcus Smart and scored the first seven points, kick-starting a 26-4 run to open the game.

The Celtics defense proved to be immense, holding the visitors to just 42 points with less than three minutes remaining in the third quarter.

Eleven first-quarter points also set a new record for the Heat's worst offensive first quarter in any playoff game in their history.

After only scoring 10 points in Game 3, Tatum responded in fine fashion, racking up a team-high 31 points on eight-of-16 shooting, hitting 14-of-16 free throws, while adding eight rebounds, five assists and two blocks.

Speaking later, Tatum highlighted the confidence he has in his ability, despite how dark things can get immediately following a painful loss.

"Right after it's tough," he said. "You're frustrated with how you played, knowing how important this time of year is, and feeling like you let your team-mates down.

"But I think I do a really good job of sleeping it off – regardless of if I have 10 points or 46 points – the next day is the next day, and whatever happened, happened.

"Obviously I was ready to get back to playing, but I didn't doubt myself – I know how to play basketball.

"Regardless of how many points I score, [it's about] just trying to come out and help us get a win. That's most important."

With the series now tied at 2-2, Tatum called it "a new series", but he stressed his side need to bring the same intensity after a win, as opposed to just after crushing losses.

"It's 2-2 – it's kind of like a new series, a best-of-three," Tatum said.

"Human nature plays a part in [the swings in the series]. When you win a game, you can relax a little bit, but obviously when we lose a game, we feel like the next game is do-or-die, and then we come out and play how we did.

"We need to have that mindset going into Game 5 – it is a must-win game – and tonight was essentially something like that. Everybody knew it, we could all feel it, and I think it showed with the way we came out."

When asked if he enjoyed sitting out the fourth quarter after clocking 117 minutes across the first three games of the series, Tatum said: "It was extremely nice – especially because we were winning."

Celtics coach Ime Udoka made sure to highlight the efforts of White after he finished with 13 points, eight rebounds, six assists and three steals.

"He checks so many boxes for us, it's not only things that show up on the stat sheet," Udoka said.

"He's the guy that moves the ball very well, defends extremely well, multiple positions… I couldn't be more happy with him being here, and what he brings to this team."

Udoka touched on what it will take to come out on top in this series, echoing Tatum's sentiments about bringing the same intensity after a win.

"Our mindset was right coming out, we came out with the right physicality and focus," he said. "We've just got to muster that same energy when we're coming off a win, as well as a loss.

"It wasn't our best offensive night, but defensively, obviously we were elite tonight, for the most part.

"We've got room to grow still, that's the thing with us, and we can always rely on our defense. We've won several games doing that this year when our shots aren't falling.

"To hold them in the 30s for basically three quarters, it's high-level defense.

"We can do that even if our shots are not falling, it's mainly about taking care of the ball, not letting them get anything easy, and kind of wearing on them mentally."

After Game 5 in Miami, Game 6 will head back to Boston, with a potential Game 7 to be played in Miami, if required.

Tampa Bay Lightning goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy added to his glittering resume as he shut-out the Florida Panthers 2-0 in Game 4 of their series, locking up a 4-0 series sweep.

It marks the sixth time Vasilevskiy has shut-out an opponent in a series-clinching win – the most in NHL history.

He also became the first player since at least 1955-56, when saves first started being tracked, to save at least 30 shots, allow no more than one goal, and earn the win in five consecutive games. 

The Lightning outscored the Panthers 13-3 for the series.

In Monday's game, Tampa Bay's home fans had to wait until the third period for the deadlock to finally be broken, as Pat Maroon got on the end of a Zach Bogosian assist, before Ondrej Palat sealed things with an empty-net goal with the clock winding down.

Speaking to post-game media, Lightning coach Jon Cooper highlighted how silly it was to question the quality of an all-time goaltender like Vasilevskiy after a tough start to their last series against the Toronto Maple Leafs.

"I’m not so sure there’s much more I can say about [Vasilevskiy]," he said. 

"It’s funny how the playoffs are – five games into the Toronto series and you’re asking all these questions about what’s wrong with Vasilevsky.

"It's never a doubt in our locker room. A goalie's job, if you want to be elite, is to give your team a chance to win.

"When a goaltender gives your team a chance to win, it comes in a variety of ways. Tonight, it was that he wasn’t letting anything in. And we’ve seen that time and time again."

Tampa Bay's Alex Killorn added that it is a joy to take the ice next to a future Hall-of-Famer.

"It’s pretty cool to play with a player that I think will go down as one of the best goalies that’s ever played the game," he said. 

"That’s how you kind of gauge players – how they perform in big-time games – and he’s been nothing but tremendous in his game."

Panthers interim coach Andrew Brunette said while it was a tough pill to swallow, it was a tremendous learning experience for his side after winning their first playoff series since 1996 to earn a shot at the reigning back-to-back Stanley Cup winners.

"They’re really good – I mean, they’re Stanley Cup champions for a reason," he said.

"Their evolution of how they were once a high-flying, kind of offensive team, and [now] they've found their recipe on how to win, and they stick with it.

"Obviously, we aspire to be them, and this was another learning experience for us. We need to be better."

The New York Yankees have lost three games in a row for the first time this season after a 6-4 defeat against the Baltimore Orioles on Monday.

Making the win even more impressive for the Orioles was the fact that Yankees ace Gerrit Cole was on the mound, and superstar Aaron Judge blasted a first-inning home run.

Jose Trevino doubled the Yankees' lead with an RBI single in the second frame, before Cole began to struggle in the third.

Orioles batters Ramon Urias and Robinson Chirinos kicked off the third inning with back-to-back doubles, before Austin Hays drove in two with his base hit and Ryan Mountcastle made it 4-2 with an RBI fielder's choice.

Cole woke up after that, striking out the next five Orioles batters, and when Judge stepped up in the fifth inning and tied the game with his second home run, it appeared the Yankees were going to take over down the stretch.

But the Orioles would not go away, with Urias blasting his own home run off Cole to put his side up 5-4, and they were able to add an extra insurance run in the top of the last inning.

Judge's two home runs take his tally to 17 for the season – five more than any other player.

The Yankees still hold a half-game lead over the Los Angeles Dodgers as the best team in baseball, now 29-13.

Dodgers win with small-ball

The Los Angeles Dodgers piled on 10 runs without a home run as they defeated the Washington Nationals 10-1.

Of the Dodgers' 10 runs, one was driven in through a ground-out, four through singles with runners in scoring position, four with doubles, and one via a Christian Taylor triple.

Trea Turner finished with a game-high three RBIs, while Freddie Freeman collected a game-high three hits from five at-bats.

Tyler Anderson was superb on the mound for the Dodgers, pitching eight full innings for eight strikeouts while giving up no runs, no walks and five hits.

Goldschmidt delivers in extra innings

St. Louis Cardinals first-baseman Paul Goldschmidt continued his historic hitting streak in style, capping off his side's 7-3 win against the Toronto Blue Jays with a walk-off grand slam in extra innings.

With the game tied at 3-3 after nine innings, the Cardinals were able to hold the Blue Jays scoreless in the top of the 10th, before two walks loaded the bases for Goldschmidt.

He blasted the fourth pitch of the at-bat 366 feet over the left-field wall to give his side the win, and extend his hitting streak to 15 games.

Since RBIs became an official stat in 1920, no player has ever matched Goldschmidt's numbers of 28 hits, 12 doubles, five home runs and 22 RBIs over a 15-game stretch.

The Boston Celtics smothered the Miami Heat all night on the way to a 102-82 victory in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Finals.

With the win, the Celtics evened the series at 2-2, and are still yet to lose back-to-back games this postseason. 

It all started on the defensive end for Boston, playing in front of their raucous home fans, as the Heat missed their first 14 field goal attempts.

The Celtics led 29-11 at quarter time – after leading 26-4 at one stage – marking the fewest first-quarter points ever scored by a Heat team in the playoffs. They shot three-for-20 from the field.

Victor Oladipo tried to ignite the Heat off the bench, scoring 18 of their first 28 points, but it was a historically bad showing from Miami's starting line-up, made even worse by the fact Sixth Man of the Year Tyler Herro was out injured.

With three minutes remaining in the third quarter, the Heat trailed 73-42, leading to their starters getting benched for the final frame. Their five starters combined to score 18 points and shoot seven-for-38 (18 per cent) from the field.

For Boston, Jayson Tatum was terrific, scoring 24 of his 31 points in the first half, finishing up with shooting figures of eight-of-16 from the field and 14-of-16 from the free throw line.

The big-man combination of Al Horford and Robert Williams III was also game-changing, as the duo combined for 22 rebounds and six blocks, while Derrick White also shined in his first game since becoming a father.

White missed Game 3 for the birth of his child, and after scoring no more than nine points since Game 4 of the Celtics series against the Milwaukee Bucks, he had 10 points in the first quarter as he started in the place of the injured Marcus Smart.

He went on to finish with 13 points, eight rebounds, six assists, three steals and a blocked shot.

Game 5 will head back to Miami with plenty on the line. Throughout NBA history, when a series has been tied 2-2, the winner of Game 5 goes on to win the series 82 per cent of the time – although the Celtics bucked that trend last round.

Novak Djokovic found his footing after the first set to cruise past Yoshihito Nishioka 6-3 6-1 6-0 in Monday's opening round, and said he feels good returning to Roland Garros after winning the French Open in 2021.

It was a relatively close opening set of the tournament for Djokovic, as Nishioka created three break-point opportunities compared to the Serb's two, but Djokovic was able to save all three, while capitalising on one of his own.

Overall for the first set, Djokovic won 55 per cent of the total points, and that number climbed the longer the match went on. He won 63 per cent of the points in the second set, and 67 per cent in the third.

Speaking with the media after his match, Djokovic was excited to be back on clay as he seeks his third French Open crown – the only grand slam he has not won at least three times.

"I have to be pleased with the match," he said. "I struggled to adapt in the first set. 

"He is a very quick player. The first set was close, but I cruised through the second and third.

"I always expect the highest for myself, but it was a very good start. I have been feeling well on clay in the past few weeks. 

"I am happy to be back. The memories from last year are fresh in my mind."

In the second round, Djokovic will play the winner between Alex Molcan and Federia Coria.

Rafael Nadal declared he must improve every aspect of his game despite dominating Jordan Thompson in the first round of the French Open on Monday.

Nadal arrived at Roland Garros with just five matches under his belt in the clay-court season after recovering from a foot injury, but cruised to a 6-2 6-2 6-2 victory over Thompson on Court Philippe-Chatrier.

That moved him beyond Roger Federer's record number of victories at a single grand slam with 106 from 109 matches, with the Swiss great's 105 coming at Wimbledon.

Nadal, bidding to win the Paris major for a record-extending 14th time and take his overall haul to 22, will face Corentin Moutet in the second round and the fifth seed says there is plenty of room for improvement.

The Spaniard said: "I need to improve in all ways. I think I need to improve my movement, the speed of my forehand, the speed I think could be better and should be better. 

"I did things well, for a while was good. The conditions were heavier than usual here, very humid, the court. I don't know, [maybe] having the roof on for a long time.

"I am happy with the performance. It has been a positive start. Then of course, the kind of player that I am, I'm always looking for something else, looking for better things. 

"That's what I am going to try to find in my practice tomorrow and then in the next match."

Nadal says there is no point dwelling on the disappointment of not having played on his favourite surface as often as he usually has before the second major of the year.

He added: "I got injured, and that's it. What happened is past, and here we are. We are in Roland Garros. I am here to try my best.

"And how is my level of confidence, how the things would be or if I didn't get injured, I don't know. We will never know.

"I'm not a big fan of think about the things that could happen if – 'if' is a dangerous word.  You have to accept the moment to accept the moment, to accept the situation and to have the confidence to put all my effort in every single day, to get better and better. Let's see how far I can keep going."

Novak Djokovic started the defence of his French Open title with an emphatic straight-sets defeat of Yoshihito Nishioka.

The world number one, bidding to win a record-equalling 21st grand slam title, triumphed 6-3 6-1 6-0 in the first night session on Court Philippe-Chatrier a day after turning 35.

Djokovic was unable to play in the Australian Open after being deported from Melbourne, but hit the ground running in his first major match of the year under the lights at Roland Garros on Monday.

The top seed hit 35 winners as Japanese outsider Nishioka was given a lesson and will face Alex Molcan or Federico Coria in the second round.

Djokovic was gifted a first break when his left-handed opponent double-faulted to go 4-2 down and the Serb comfortably served out the set.

Nishioka had no answer to the two-time French Open champion and the crowd did not do the outsider any favours by booing one of the all-time greats, seemingly due to him being so superior to his opponent.

A fired-up Djokovic marched into a 5-0 lead in the second set and, although Nishioka was able to avoid a bagel, he could not take a game off the defending champion in another totally one-sided third set.

This was a statement victory for Djokovic on the back of his record-extending 38th ATP Masters 1000 crown in Rome.

Data Slam: Relentless Djokovic shows no mercy

This was another exhibition of returning from the favourite to win the title. Djokovic won 45 of 79 receiving points in a relentless display on day two.

WINNERS/UNFORCED ERRORS
Djokovic – 35/32
Nishioka – 17/32

ACES/DOUBLE FAULTS
Djokovic – 9/0
Nishioka – 6/3

BREAK POINTS WON
Djokovic – 8/18
Nishioka – 1/6

Marvin Plattenhardt's second-half free-kick preserved Hertha Berlin's Bundesliga status as they fought back to beat Hamburg 2-1 on aggregate.

Hamburg won the first leg 1-0 last week, but they will remain in 2. Bundesliga after Felix Magath's side consigned them to a 2-0 defeat at Volksparkstadion on Monday.

Captain Dedryck Boyata levelled the play-off when he rose to head Plattenhardt's corner into the back of the net only four minutes in.

Hertha were in front after 63 minutes, when Plattenhardt's set-piece from wide on the right flew over Hamburg goalkeeper Daniel Heuer Fernandes and into the far corner of the net.

Stevan Jovetic could have sealed it when he went one-on-one with Fernandes but was denied by the keeper.

That miss did not prove to be costly as Hertha held on to remain in the top flight despite Lucas Tousart's stoppage-time sending off for a second bookable offence on a painful night for Hamburg.

There was a brief celebration from Magath, who was appointed as Hertha head coach until the end of the season in March, after his side stayed up at the expense of a club where he had great success as a player and also served as a coach.

Hamburg have been in the second tier since they dropped out of the Bundesliga for the first time in their history four years ago.

Ilkay Gundogan came off the bench to inspire Manchester City to the win that secured the Premier League title on Sunday, but spare a thought for Bernardo Silva.

Gundogan came on in the 68th minute, just before Philippe Coutinho made it 2-0 to Aston Villa, as it looked like City would let the title slip from their grasp.

But in scenes comparable to their incredible win over QPR on the final day of the 2011-12 season, City scored three goals in the space of five minutes and 37 seconds to turn the game on its head.

Gundogan scored twice, either side of Rodri's equaliser, to seal his name in City folklore.

It was Silva who made way for Gundogan and, while celebrating his first Premier League title in style, it would seem a rather jolly Jack Grealish could not resist having a friendly jibe at his team-mate.

Having taken the microphone from Kyle Walker, who had been busy eulogising about John Stones, Grealish said on City's official live stream of the open-top bus parade through Manchester: "Do you know what, I said earlier on the coach, it's been brilliant to win my first title.

"I want to thank everyone, but the main person I want to thank is Bernardo Silva for coming off in the 70th minute, because he was miles off it yesterday!"

Grealish seemed intent on being the life of the party, also quipping that Pep Guardiola had signed him because he is the only player capable of beating Walker in a one-v-one, though the England international is probably fortunate that City do not have training to focus on any time soon. He may just have a sore head come Tuesday morning.