top esports games DALLAS – If you attended a high school dance at any point in the 1980s, you no doubt heard “Chicago” lead singer Peter Cetera croon these words: “Everybody needs a little time away, I heard her say, from each other...” ADVERTISEMENT The members of the Minnesota Wild seem to genuinely enjoy each other’s company, and their willingness to work together for the good of the order shows in their 21 wins thus far, and their flirtation with the top spot in the Western Conference standings. But following their 4-3 win over Chicago (the Blackhawks, not the band) on Monday, the NHL mandates that every team take a three-day break for Christmas. At risk of the hefty fine from the league, teams cannot get together for practice, nor may they travel to road games until the morning of Friday, Dec. 27. That means the Wild were gameday arrivals in North Texas for their Friday evening meeting with the Stars. And as much hassle as that may be, most Wild players and coaches were eager for the time off by the time the final horn sounded on Monday. “The way I see it is I think this is a break at a key time for us, and I give the players a lot of credit. We’ve been going at max capacity and really dialed in from training camp till now and there’s been way more success than there has been failure,” coach John Hynes said, after his team snapped a four-game skid with the win over the Blackhawks. “But I also think that guys have really pushed, and I think guys have produced at certain times. I think it’s important for our group now to be able to get away from it for a few days, come off a win in a game that we played well, and then now it’s come back and we just reset and get moving forward.” As has been the case for much of this injury-riddled season to date, the biggest question about moving forward is which players it will involve. For example, top-line center Joel Eriksson Ek, whose big body and noteworthy skill have been missed since a lower-body injury in early December, looked to be inching closer to a return during the team’s last pre-Christmas practice. Getting some rest before facing a tough team like Dallas on the road is one positive factor, the Wild hope. Another pick-me-up was getting the victory by whatever means necessary versus Chicago, to end a season-worst losing streak. “It’s nice to go into the break with a win, but the games before, we’re not happy with,” Wild captain Jared Spurgeon admitted. “It’s tough throughout the year to be at 100 (percent) mentally and physically, so to have three days at this point, it’s big for us to sort of just relax, get away from it, hang with family friends and do something a little different.” ADVERTISEMENT And once they get back on the ice in Dallas, they plan to get back to more of the theme of the early season – namely getting contributions from throughout the lineup and competing for the lead in the Central Division. “I’m pretty convinced that after the break we come back then we get set for another while,” Hynes said, noting their next extended time off comes after Minnesota hosts the New York Islanders on Feb. 8. “You got Christmas basically until the 4 Nations break and that’s when we can re-plug in and get guys dialed in, get the team dialed in.” ______________________________________________________ This story was written by one of our partner news agencies. Forum Communications Company uses content from agencies such as Reuters, Kaiser Health News, Tribune News Service and others to provide a wider range of news to our readers. Learn more about the news services FCC uses here .Accountable Care Solutions Global Market Report 2024: Advancing Towards A $25.42 Billion Projection

I’ve been thinking about financial risk lately. Should I change my asset allocation in my retirement portfolio, considering Donald Trump’s successful bid for the White House? Stock market valuations have risen smartly in recent years, which real income growth, productivity improvements, technological innovation, low unemployment rates and healthy corporate profits have largely powered. Yet with the election of Trump, voters have approved a massive economic experiment. The Trump administration comes into power with many policy goals, but four economic initiatives stand out: Enacting significant tax cuts; imposing broad-based and significant tariffs; sweeping raids, mass deportations and tighter immigration controls; and slashing federal government regulations. The extent that these plans turn into reality and how each policy will interact with the others is uncertain. The risks are obvious. The outcome isn’t. Enter risk management, a critical concept in finance. Professionals often associate risk with volatility. The tight link makes sense, since owning assets with high volatility hikes the odds of losses if there is a pressing need to sell the asset to raise money. However, for the typical individual and household, risk means the odds money decisions made today don’t pan out. Managing risk means lowering the negative financial impact on your desired standard of living from decisions gone wrong and when circumstances take an untoward turn. “Anything that makes reaching or maintaining that more likely reduces your risk, and anything that makes this less likely increases your risk,” writes Bob French, the investment expert at Retirement Researcher. “Everything else is just details.” The key risk management concept is a margin of safety, a bedrock personal finance idea broader than investment portfolios. It can include having an emergency savings fund, owning life insurance to protect your family and investing in your network of friends and colleagues to hedge against the risk of losing your job. The right mix depends on the particulars of your situation. In my case, after studying my portfolio, running household money numbers and reviewing lifestyle goals, I’m comfortable with the asset allocation in my retirement portfolio. There is too much noise in the markets for comfort, and market timing is always tricky. The prudent approach with my individual situation is to stay the course. That might or might not be true for your household. A thoughtful and broad-based review of the financial risks your household confronts is a sensible path to take at any time, but especially at this juncture in economic history. Chris Farrell is senior economics contributor for “Marketplace” and a commentator for Minnesota Public Radio.

An online debate over foreign workers in tech shows tensions in Trump's political coalitionNoneTreasurer Jim Chalmers says Liberals would have caused ‘recession’ while defending ‘weak’ economy and spending

TAXES will have to be hiked further to help stabilise the public finances, Rachel Reeves has been told. A health check on the UK economy highlighted the need to “mobilise additional revenue” to withstand shocks, the OECD said. The influential report came as Bank of England boss Andrew Bailey said there could be as many as four interest rate cuts next year. But the Chancellor was given the stern warning after telling business leaders last month she wouldn’t have to carry out further borrowing or tax raids. Growth for next year was upgraded to 1.7 per cent - up from 1.2 per cent - but the Paris-based organisation fears Budget changes will then “crowd out” business investment. The boost, down to higher government spending, will make the UK the best-performing G7 economy next year beating Japan , France , Germany and Italy . Read more on tax hikes Chancellor Rachel Reeves added: “Growth is our number one priority, and the OECD upgrade will mean the UK is the fastest growing European economy in the G7 over the next three years. “That is only the start. Growth only matters if it’s matched by more money in people’s pockets.” The influential report also said interest rates which currently stand at 4.75 per cent will now expect to fall by less than expected. The government’s spending plans will keep inflation at 2.7 per cent next year, the OECD say. It will then see a slower interest rate fall, expected to be 3.5 per cent by the first part of 2026. Most read in The Sun But Bank of England chief Andrew Bailey last night was asked if there would be about four interest rate cuts next year, saying: “Yup.” He told the FT: “We’ve been looking at a number of potential paths ahead — and some of them are better than others.” He also said the rise in national insurance contributions is the “biggest issue” in how firms balance prices, wages and the employment levels. Figures also show that 45 companies have de-listed so far this year - the most since 2010 - from the London Stock Exchange. Meanwhile, Sir Keir Starmer refused to repeat his previous pledge that the UK will have the fastest growth in the G7 during a heated clash with Tory leader Kemi Badenoch . Downing Street later clarified that the government remains “committed” to that mission. The global economy is predicted to grow by 3.2 per cent this year and 3.3 per cent next year which is higher than predicted.Starmer says ‘bulging benefits bill’ is ‘blighting our society’Fine Gael won 35 seats in the 2020 election, but 18 of those TDs did not seek re-election in Friday’s poll. An exit poll puts the party’s support at 21%, a fraction of a percentage behind the main opposition party Sinn Fein. Mr Harris, the outgoing Taoiseach, was elected with 16,869 first preference votes, well above the quota. He celebrated with his wife Caoimhe, his parents Bart and Mary, his sister Gemma and his political team at the count centre in Greystones, Co Wicklow. Ahead of his re-election, Mr Harris told reporters he was “cautiously optimistic” about the election result and said it was “clear that my party will gain seats”. “It’s also clear that Fine Gael will top the poll in at least 10 constituencies, many more than we did the last time, that we will gain seats in constituencies where we haven’t had seats in many years, like Tipperary South and Waterford, and that we will add second seats in other constituencies as well,” he said. “I think the people of Ireland have now spoken. We now have to work out exactly what they have said, and that is going to take a little bit of time.” In one of the five consecutive broadcast media rounds he did from the Greystones count centre, he said there were a lot of areas where there were “straight shoot-outs” between Fianna Fail and Fine Gael for final seats. He described the Sinn Fein vote as “pretty significantly down”, the Fianna Fail vote as “marginally down” and the Fine Gael vote as “static” compared with its 2020 vote. He said it was “a very close, a very competitive election” and that “we haven’t seen a Sinn Fein surge or anything like it”. He said: “It was predicted by many that I would become the Taoiseach for a brief period of time, take over from Leo Varadkar, and then have to rebuild my party from the opposition benches as Sinn Fein led a government. “We don’t know what’s going to happen on government formation yet, but that is now looking less likely than it was.” He acknowledged that it was “a very difficult day” for the Green Party and paid tribute to their work in the coalition government, alongside his party and Fianna Fail. “Definitely, politics in Ireland has gotten much more fragmented,” he said. Fine Gael minister Helen McEntee said that her party’s campaign had been “positive”. “The feeling on the doors was very much that people were relatively happy with the government,” she said on RTE Radio. “It will come down to the last seats and it will come down to transfers,” she said of the final result, adding that Fianna Fail and Fine Gael were performing better than the exit poll estimated.

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Support for Kemi Badenoch is almost as strong among Reform UK supporters as within the Tory tribe, the latest Savanta polling shows. Fifty-nine per cent of people who voted Tory in the summer election think she would make a better prime minister than Sir Keir Starmer , as do 57 per cent of those who voted Reform. A key challenge for the Tory leader is winning over people who supported Nigel Farage ’s party in July. Just four per cent of Reform backers think Sir Keir would be the finer PM, with the rest undecided. Among all respondents, 39 per cent think the Labour leader has what it takes to be the best prime minister, with 26 per cent opting for Mrs Badenoch. However, Chris Hopkins, political research director at Savanta, saw a silver lining for the Tory leader, suggesting this “isn’t a bad position to start from”. He said that “Starmer trailed Boris Johnson by more than 20 points at the start of his own tenure as party leader”. While 41 per cent of Britons said they disliked both Sir Keir and his policies, just 29 per cent said this of Mrs Badenoch. And 37 per cent disliked both the Labour leader and his party, with one in three saying this of the leader of the opposition. Mr Hopkins said: “At the start of Starmer’s tenure, just 23 per cent of the public said they disliked both Starmer and his party, 10 points lower than it is for Badenoch now. Reversing your own party’s fortunes from opposition is easier said than done, but will be made harder for Badenoch by her own low personal favourability down at -10. “Badenoch needs the vast majority of people still to make up their minds about her to end up actively liking her, and history tells us that almost no politician ends up achieving such a feat.” Exclusive polling by Ipsos shows one of the biggest challenges facing the Tory frontbench is invisibility. Nearly half of Britons (46 per cent) could not recall reading or hearing about leading Conservatives other than Mrs Badenoch “in the past couple of weeks”. Priti Patel, the Shadow Foreign Secretary, had the highest profile, with 32 per cent saying they had noticed her. She was quickly followed by Shadow Justice Secretary Robert Jenrick (31 per cent), with Shadow Chancellor Mel Stride (15 per cent), Shadow Education Secretary Laura Trott (12 per cent) and Shadow Environment Secretary Victoria Atkins (seven per cent) coming in further behind. The polling conducted on November 8-11 found only one in 25 people could remember Shadow Energy Secretary Claire Coutinho or Shadow Leader of the Commons Jesse Norman coming onto their radar. Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury Richard Fuller made an impression on just three per cent of respondents. And a mere one in 50 had noticed the likes of Shadow Defence Secretary James Cartlidge or Science Secretary Alan Mak. Mrs Badenoch will hope that as the MPs bed into their shadow cabinet roles and take on Sir Keir’s team their profiles will rise. A former Tory minister acknowledged the difficulty of winning the limelight after a lost election, saying: “It’s never easy because governments get all the attention, particularly in the wake of elections. We’re still in that period where everyone is interested in the Government. “That’s the price you pay for going into Opposition.” The highest-profile Labour MP other than the Prime Minister was Chancellor Rachel Reeves. Nearly half of people (48 per cent) had read or heard about her recently. The next most prominent were Deputy PM Angela Rayner (36 per cent), Foreign Secretary David Lammy (35 per cent), Shadow Energy Secretary Ed Miliband (27 per cent), and Home Secretary Yvette Cooper and Health Secretary Wes Streeting (both 26 per cent).

DELAND, Fla. (AP) — Jayden Brewer had 20 points in Florida International's 81-72 victory against Stetson on Saturday night. Brewer had five rebounds for the Panthers (4-6). Asim Jones scored 12 points while shooting 2 of 5 from the field and 8 for 10 from the line. Vianney Salatchoum shot 5 of 8 from the field and 1 for 3 from the line to finish with 11 points, while adding six rebounds. Jordan Wood led the Hatters (1-9) in scoring, finishing with 25 points and three blocks. Josh Massey added 13 points and six rebounds for Stetson. Mehki had 13 points and two steals. The loss is the ninth straight for the Hatters. The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by and data from .Jacob Meyer and sharpshooting DePaul use a big 2nd half to defeat Wichita State 91-72LOS ANGELES — The locker room after the Rams’ 37-20 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles was as quiet as any this season. Players shouldered blame in quiet, shorts responses to reporters’ questions before filing out and into the night. As they dissected what had just happened, the Rams (5-6) also looked ahead and stated they could not afford for this game to spiral into the next game, which is Sunday’s matchup with the New Orleans Saints (4-7). “Just make sure you turn the page. Obviously, there are things that we want to correct from the game and find ways to be better moving forward, but make sure that we come out with great energy today. It starts today,” Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford said before Wednesday’s practice. “There are going to be things we want to clean up from practice, make sure we do that and move on day-to-day with the right attitude and the right spirit.” As the Rams have gone about making those corrections, a consistent word has come to mind: Consistency. Asked what he’s looking for from the defense Sunday after its worst performance since the early weeks of the season, head coach Sean McVay used that word. He spoke about playing as a unit, sticking to assignments, coverage and pass rush complementing each other. Then he added with a smile, “Same things I’m looking for on the defense would be exactly how I would answer your offensive question as well.” Even 11 games into the season, we still haven’t seen the Rams offense perform with the type of consistency you would expect from a group with this much talent. Against the Eagles, the Rams moved the ball well in the first quarter, reaching the red zone twice without needing a third down. But any momentum was quickly lost with a 10-play second quarter that resulted in a loss of six yards. It was the same story a week before, with the offense blazing in the second and third quarters against the Patriots while going nowhere in the first and fourth quarters. “It’s kind of the word ‘consistency’ right now,” Rams offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur said. “There are times where it feels like we go right down the field and put it in, and there are other times where it just feels a little bit harder than it should. I think that’s the biggest key right now.” The defense is facing a similar obstacle. The Rams are among the best in the NFL at holding teams without a touchdown in the red zone, limiting opponents to a 48.8% success rate. That ranks eighth in the league, but the flip side is that the Rams allow teams 3.7 trips into the red zone per game, which is tied for 28th. Defensive tackle and captain Kobie Turner raised the issue of allowing too many long drives following the Eagles loss, and defensive coordinator Chris Shula agreed with the assessment. “Some of that, especially the other night, they were in third downs a decent amount of time and it was a third and favorable,” Shula said. “Then, finding a way to get stops, finding a way to play, get them off track, get them into 2nd-and-longs where you get those 3rd-longs, and you can earn the right to rush the passer.” Related Articles Entering Week 13, it’s not encouraging that the Rams are still struggling to find consistency in their execution. But to this point, it hasn’t upended their season. The wild card might be out of reach, but the NFC West title is still up for grabs. But that starts with a road win against a Saints team playing with nothing to lose. “We know that it’s going to be a great challenge, especially at their place. It’ll be rocking atmosphere and environment with the holidays and the momentum they have,” McVay said. “We’ve a lot of guys that are experiencing things for the first time. I have seen the resolve of this group show itself. Now, we’ve to do it.” When: 1:05 p.m. Sunday Where: Superdome, New Orleans TV/radio: FOX (Ch. 11)/710 AM; 93.1 FM; 1330 AM (Spanish); Sirius 382, 226Alpha Modus and Insight Acquisition Corp Close Business Combination and Alpha Modus will Begin ...

Wild host the Predators after Spurgeon's 2-goal performanceMIKEL ARTETA says he will send a scan of Bukayo Saka’s injury to anyone claiming the winger was fit for England duty. Three Lions skipper Harry Kane questioned the commitment of some players after Saka and eight others withdrew from the latest squad. Saka scored for Arsenal on Saturday after recovering from his thigh injury. Boss Arteta said: “We can send them the MRI scan, it’s very simple.” Saka scored one and made one in the 3-0 win over Nottingham Forest. Arteta added: “The communication was very clear between the medical staff of Arsenal and the national team. READ MORE IN FOOTBALL “He needed time to heal. He has done one training session.” Saka and club-mate Declan Rice were named in Lee Carsley’s original 26-man squad for the Nations League games against Greece and the Republic of Ireland. Both had come off in the 1-1 draw at Chelsea. Arsenal sent Saka for a scan and the results were shared with England’s medical team who said the player should remain with the Gunners for treatment. Most read in Football FOOTBALL FREE BETS AND SIGN UP DEALS Rice pulled out as he was playing with a broken toe. Cole Palmer and Levi Colwill also withdrew, as did Manchester City’s Jack Grealish and Phil Foden, plus Everton’s Jarrad Branthwaite — those five all played for their clubs yesterday. Southampton’s Aaron Ramsdale (finger) and Trent Alexander-Arnold (thigh) of Liverpool also called off Three Lions duty. Kane, who was himself carrying a knock, did not hide his disappointment. He had said: “England comes before anything. It comes before club.” Palmer, 22, played 90 minutes before and after the international break. But his Blues boss Enzo Maresca denies Chelsea are pressuring him to put club before country. He snapped: “Absolutely not. I’m not thinking about Harry Kane, or what he’s saying.”

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