The clubs announced the swap of minor league forwards Monday.

Wilson has played in 39 NHL games and has five points in 22 AHL games this season with Syracuse. The Lightning acquired the two-time Calder Cup champion from Nashville last summer.

Sexton has 16 points in 27 games with the Ducks’ AHL affiliate in Norfolk this season. He signed with Anaheim in 2009 and has played in 88 NHL games.

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Erskine was punished Saturday for a hit he delivered to Simmonds’ face that sent him to the ice with a bloody nose late in the first period of Washington’s 3-2 victory on Friday night.

Erskine wasn’t penalized for the shot that knocked Simmonds out of the game.

“Obviously, he’s got a head injury and probably a little bit of whiplash going on right now,” Flyers general manager Paul Holmgren said after the game. “He seemed OK after the game. We’re just going to have to wait and see how he is (Saturday).”

Based on his average salary, Erskine will forfeit $24,324.33 to the Players’ Emergency Assistance Fund.

Erskine will miss two games against Pittsburgh and a matchup with Toronto. He will be eligible to return when the Capitals face Florida at home on Feb. 9.

The Flyers were already without forward Scott Hartnell (broken foot) and defenseman Andrej Meszaros (shoulder). Forward Danny Briere was playing in his fourth game this season after missing the start of the season with a fractured wrist.

After the hit on Simmonds, which drew blood, Zac Rinaldo and Matt Hendricks fought before the ensuing faceoff. Both players received a five-minute fighting major and game misconduct.

Simmonds entered the game with five points in seven games this season, averaging more than 18 minutes of ice time per game.

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Erskine was punished Saturday for a hit he delivered to Simmonds’ face that sent him to the ice with a bloody nose late in the first period of Washington’s 3-2 victory on Friday night.

Erskine wasn’t penalized for the shot that knocked Simmonds out of the game.

“Obviously, he’s got a head injury and probably a little bit of whiplash going on right now,” Flyers general manager Paul Holmgren said after the game. “He seemed OK after the game. We’re just going to have to wait and see how he is (Saturday).”

Based on his average salary, Erskine will forfeit $24,324.33 to the Players’ Emergency Assistance Fund.

Erskine will miss two games against Pittsburgh and a matchup with Toronto. He will be eligible to return when the Capitals face Florida at home on Feb. 9.

The Flyers were already without forward Scott Hartnell (broken foot) and defenseman Andrej Meszaros (shoulder). Forward Danny Briere was playing in his fourth game this season after missing the start of the season with a fractured wrist.

After the hit on Simmonds, which drew blood, Zac Rinaldo and Matt Hendricks fought before the ensuing faceoff. Both players received a five-minute fighting major and game misconduct.

Simmonds entered the game with five points in seven games this season, averaging more than 18 minutes of ice time per game.

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to be out, but we’ve still got to get the job done regardless of who is out there.”

Splitter re-energized the Spurs, scoring on a dunk and a reverse layup to make it 77-67 with 7:28 left. Splitter had six points and two rebounds in the final quarter and Parker added five points and three assists.

“In the second half, we lost our focus and the defense dissipated and that let them get back in the game,” Popovich said. “Once again, Tony and Tiago were great. They were steady the entire night. We got it done.”

Game notes
Spurs G Manu Ginobili was sidelined by left hamstring tightness. … Washington F Trevor Booker (sore left wrist) was a late scratch. … The Wizards have had nine different leading scorers for an individual game, with six in the last 10 games. … Washington’s last win in San Antonio was 99-89 on Dec. 11, 1999. … Wall was averaging 13.7 points, 6.5 assists and 2.9 rebounds since returning from injury. … San Antonio was playing its final home game before its annual “Rodeo Road Trip.” The Spurs will play nine straight road games while the San Antonio Livestock Show and Rodeo is held at the AT&T Center.

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Reserve forward Mike Scott scored 10 points to lead Atlanta as none of the starters reached double figures. Josh Smith and Kyle Korver had nine points each.

Jeff Teague had a layup with 7.9 seconds left to prevent the Hawks’ lowest scoring total in franchise history.

Atlanta has lost five straight on the road and six of seven overall.

The Bulls held the Hawks to just five points in the second quarter and led 48-20 at the break. Ivan Johnson had a basket for the Hawks with 2:54 left in the first quarter, and Atlanta did not score again until Al Horford’s tip with 5:15 left in the second. The Hawks missed 17 consecutive shots during the drought while getting outscored 14-0.

They finished the 2 for 21 from the field in the second quarter, with Smith making a free throw and a jumper for Atlanta’s other points. The Hawks shot 20.5 percent on 8-of-39 shooting in the first half. Josh Smith was 3 for 10 Horford 2 for 8 in the opening two periods.

Boozer had 14 points and Deng eight to help the Bulls to their halftime lead. Noah had 12 rebounds in the half and finished with 16 and nine points.

The Bulls set a record for the fewest points allowed, eclipsing the previous mark of 59 by Orlando last March 19. Atlanta’s 20 points in the first half also set a Chicago record for the fewest allowed in a half, bettering the 22 scored by the Knicks in 1999. The Bulls also limited New York to five points in the second quarter of that game.

The Hawks’ previous scoring lows were six points in a quarter (at Minnesota) in 1994, 25 in a half — accomplished three times, most recently against New Orleans in 2011.

Tensions heated up in the third quarter. After Hamilton was called for an offensive foul on Devin Harris, Harris pushed Hinrich hard to the floor as he was attempting a layup. Hinrich had to be restrained by teammates after he rushed toward Harris, who was called for a flagrant one. In seperate incidents, Teague and Smith were called for technicals in the third quarter.

Taj Gibson, who had five blocks, got fans on their feet with a thunderous dunk over Anthony Tolliver to put the Bulls up 79-47 with 7:13 left.

Game notes

The Bulls’ biggest lead was 44 points. … In the teams’ last meeting, the Hawks beat the Bulls 92-75 in Atlanta on Dec. 22. … Hawks G Anthony Morrow missed the game with a lower back injury.

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The Aces closed the game out by making seven free throws over the final 1:25 on Sunday in their 71-67 victory.

“We were sloppy with the ball”, Wichita State coach Gregg Marshall said, referring to his team’s season-high turnover total. “Twenty-two turnovers is the story for us. We had to do a better job against a good defensive team like Evansville.”

Colt Ryan had 24 points and eight assists for the Aces (11-6, 4-1), who won their fourth straight conference game.

“Colt Ryan is a very good player. We worked hard to defend him, but he’s a dynamic scorer”, Marshall said of Evansville’s third all-time leading scorer.

There were 16 lead changes and 13 ties in the game. The Shockers’ biggest lead was five points, while the Aces’ was six points. Evansville had a 27-9 advantage in points off turnovers.

Malcolm Armstead had a career-high 21 points for Wichita State (15-2, 4-1).

The Aces had a big advantage at the free throw line.

“We need to get to the line more. 31 free throws to 13 is hard to overcome. Neither half did we get to the bonus,” Marshall said on the difference in free throw attempts. “We shot 54 percent from the field and 59 percent from 3 but we just had too many turnovers. Maybe it was fatigue. Our guys had to play a lot of minutes. But we just can’t throw the ball to the other guys.”

Troy Taylor had 12 points for Evansville and Ned Cox added 10.

“We competed for 40 minutes today,” Evansville head coach Marty Simmons said. “Our guys were very active on defense. I respect Wichita State and the way they do things. They are a real good team and are well coached. They had three starters out with injuries. To compete with them in the manner that we did we are fortunate.”

In the first half there were nine ties and 10 lead changes. The Aces took advantage of 11 turnovers to outscore the visitors 15-0 in points off turnovers in taking a 32-31 halftime lead on a basket by Egidijus Mockevicius with 10 seconds left. Mockevicius finished with nine points.

Armstead, who scored 15 points in the first half including three 3-pointers, was the difference for Wichita State in the first half.

Ryan had 13 points in the first half that saw neither team lead by more than four points.

The Shockers led 50-45 with 10:54 remaining on a 3-pointer Cleanthony Early, who finished 16 points, just over his 15.4 average that leads Wichita State.

The Aces went on a 13-6 run over the next 6:06 to take the lead. Two free throws by Ryan with 4:48 left gave Evansville the lead for good at 58-56.

A layup by Jake White with 26.4 seconds remaining cut the Aces’ lead to 69-67. However, his 3-point attempt with 5 seconds left to tie missed.

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Kobe Bryant scored 38 points and Dwight Howard had 21 points and 15 rebounds for the Lakers, who lost for the second time this season to their Staples Center co-tenants.

Bryant carried the Lakers in the fourth quarter when they closed to 99-97 on his 23-foot jumper with 1:29 left. But Paul scored the Clippers’ final eight points to seal the victory and drop the Lakers two games below .500. The Clippers lead the Lakers by 10 games in the standings.

The Lakers continue to struggle under new coach Mike D’Antoni. They’ve lost three of their last four games.

The Clippers shot 50 percent and outscored the Lakers 52-36 in the paint.

Bryant scored 16 points in the fourth, when the Lakers rallied from 19 points down. The Clippers fouled for much of the final 5:51, and the Lakers made 10 of 12 free throws. Howard missed two foul shots but then made two to get the Lakers within four before Bryant’s jumper got the Lakers the closest they had been since early in the game.

But Paul closed with a flourish, including a 6-for-6 stretch at the line, while Bryant’s 3-pointer went in and out with 43 seconds to go.

The Lakers got within three early in the third only to have the Clippers push their lead to 10 points. It was a similar situation in the second, when the Lakers got within five points on Bryant’s 3-pointer before the Clippers ran their lead back to 10 points by halftime.

The first three quarters were punctuated with several highlight dunks from both sides. Paul fed DeAndre Jordan and Griffin on alley-oop slams that had the sellout crowd of 20,179 roaring.

The Clippers had dropped two consecutive road games earlier in the week, when their 17-game winning streak was snapped.

Jodie Meeks scored 14 points for the Lakers and fellow reserve Jordan Hill had 13 before he sprained his right ankle early in the fourth.

Game notes

Clippers F Jamal Crawford missed the game with a sore left foot that he hurt in Denver. … Clippers G Chauncey Billups will start working out Saturday after being out most of the season recovering from surgery. … Clippers F Grant Hill is expected to return next week after missing all season because of surgery.

The post Chris Paul pours in 30 points as Clippers hold off Lakers appeared first on IdealCapper.

Russell Westbrook scored 27 points, Kevin Durant added 26 and the Thunder beat the Philadelphia 76ers 109-85 on Friday night before heading out to play 11 of their next 13 games on the road.

Oklahoma City made eight of its first 10 3-point attempts in the second half and never trailed after scoring the final five points before halftime.

The Thunder had lost 110-93 to Brooklyn on Wednesday night, but were able to avoid posting back-to-back losses at home for the first time since dropping two of the first three games of the 2010-11 season.

“We’ve got to take advantage of our fans and take advantage of home court,” Westbrook said.

Oklahoma City went 23 for 36 from the field, connecting at a sizzling 64 percent clip, while outscoring Philadelphia 63-43 in the second half.

“Our defense was really solid the whole night. The offense was a little slow, and coach told us going into the second half that we could score points so quickly, we just have to stick with our defense. That’s what we did,” Durant said.

“All we needed was to see a few shots go down.”

Serge Ibaka chipped in 15 points and 10 rebounds, and Kevin Martin had 16 points off the bench for the Thunder.

Nick Young hit five 3-pointers and led Philadelphia with 21 points. He also attempted the Sixers’ only eight free throws of the game, making six. Oklahoma City went 21 for 27.

“We’ve got to be stronger, take that ball to the basket and make them foul us,” Philly coach Doug Collins said. “For one guy to shoot a free throw tonight, I’m not saying anything that that has anything to do with the whistle. So, I don’t want that to be miscalculated at all.”

Jrue Holiday had 15 points and nine assists, Dorell Wright contributed 11 points and Thaddeus Young scored 10 for Philadelphia. Spencer Hawes pulled down 13 rebounds. The Sixers fell to 2-5 on their eight-game road trip, which started before Christmas and concludes Saturday night at San Antonio.

The schedule soon flips for both teams. Philadelphia will play 13 of 15 games at home after facing the Spurs. Oklahoma City will try to maintain one of the league’s best records while heading East, then on a pair of West Coast swings with brief stops at home in between.

“It’s a good test for us to see where we’re at. The road is always tough, no matter who you’re playing,” Durant said. “We’ve got to come out there and try to do a good job. We’re looking forward to it.”

The Thunder opened their first double-digit lead shortly after coach Scott Brooks came walking out on to the court to call timeout, screaming, “Let’s Go!” at his players after Westbrook had turned the ball over by driving into the back of teammate Kendrick Perkins shortly after halftime.

Neither player made an attempt to run to the opposite end of the court, and Jason Richardson threw down a two-handed slam off Holiday’s alley-oop.

Durant came out of the timeout and immediately drove into the lane, kicking the ball out to Thabo Sefolosha for a 3-pointer, and then drilled a 3 on the next trip down for a 56-46 advantage. Richardson answered with a 3-pointer, a layup and a runner for the Sixers before Westbrook scored six points during an 8-0 burst that pushed the lead to 69-57 for Oklahoma City with 3:50 left in the third quarter.

The Thunder salted it away with a 16-3 run late in the fourth quarter, as both teams started filtering reserves onto the court.

“They’ll hit you with a surge, and that’s what they did,” Collins said.

After a tight first half that featured 14 lead changes, Oklahoma City scored the final five points of the first half to take a 46-42 lead and stayed in front the rest of the way.

“They kept making shots,” Philadelphia’s Evan Turner said. “They tried to counter off our turnovers and they got to running. The first half, we slowed the game down and didn’t allow them to run.”

Game notes

Before the game, Collins offered his analysis of the Thunder’s offseason deal that sent Sixth Man of the Year James Harden to Houston for Martin. “I think where you’re going to see the value of James Harden is come playoff time. That’s when,” Collins said. “Because James Harden in so many instances, was their point guard and Westbrook scored and Durant. I think that’s when you’ll really see because in the playoffs, you need as many playmakers as possible. Kevin Martin can really score that ball but he plays off other guys. I think people don’t realize James Harden also last year made more free throws in the fourth quarter than anybody in the NBA.” … Country star Vince Gill watched the game from a courtside seat along the baseline. … Oklahoma City has played 20 of its first 32 games at home, going 17-3 at Chesapeake Energy Arena.

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