Tuesday’s Hot Clicks: NHL Player Got Traded While His Wife Was in Labor

It was a whirlwind day for Mikael Granlund.

Sara Schmidle/Getty Images

Talk about a life changing day

Veteran NHL center Mikael Granlund will need to catch his breath after his life got turned upside down Monday. 

Granlund, who has played each of his seven NHL seasons for the Wild, was traded at the deadline to the Predators. And the trade couldn’t have come at a worse time. Wild GM Paul Fenton told reporters that he had to deliver the news to Granlund while he was with his wife, who was in labor. 

“I did talk to him as a father and now a grandfather,” Nashville GM David Poile told reporters. “I didn’t even say anything to him about the trade for five minutes. I told him how important it was for him to take care of his wife and the baby and what a great day this is for he and his family.

“We’ll have more of a hockey conversation with him after the baby's born.”

Granlund now faces the unenviable task of picking up and moving right after welcoming a newborn baby. Hopefully his wife will have someone else around to help with diapers. 

The ovation Dirk deserved

Clippers coach Doc Rivers commandeered the microphone at the end of last night’s game against the Mavericks to tell everyone at Staples Center to give it up for Dirk Nowitzki. Dirk was clearly moved by the gesture, as was his coach.

James Harden’s streak is over

James Harden’s streak of 30-point games is over at 32, thanks in part to the Hawks’ ferocious defense on a meaningless last possession. The game was well out of reach when Harden got the ball in the final seconds, but the Hawks blanketed Harden with four defenders, preventing him from getting a last shot off and leaving him with 28 points for the night. 

The best of SI

Breaking down the fallout from the NHL trade deadline. ... Here’s what to look out for at the NFL combine this week. ... A former Manchester United star hopes to make his mark in the U.S. with Orlando City. 

Around the sports world

Bucs running back Peyton Barber had his team-issued tablet stolen but the team was able to wipe all playbook data from it remotely. ... The chairman of Elton John’s favorite soccer team says the music legend is constantly calling the club with suggestions. ... Former NBA player Al Harrington is trying to make a career as a legal marijuana baron. ... It looks like the Raiders will be staying in the Coliseum this upcoming season after all. ... Cops say Robert Kraft was at the illegal massage parlor the morning of the AFC championship. 

Who throws a shoe? Honestly. 

Boogie threw Jeremy Lamb's shoe into the crowd and got t'ed up. pic.twitter.com/BNG0tdDpOJ

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) February 26, 2019

New look for D-Wade

LaVar Ball isn’t the only basketball dad with his son on gear

Scary moment for KAT

Doing too much

Teammate throws out a backflip celly every game... we finally got it on camera from r/lacrosse

This gag never gets old

I can’t stop laughing at this

What a buzzer-beater!

Not sports

No one can figure out how this dead whale ended up in the middle of the Amazon. ... A WWE props worker detained an alleged drunk driver who tried to flee the scene of a crime. ... An Israeli spacecraft is bringing 30 million pages of human knowledge and leaving it on the moon. ... A Scottish woman returned from a trip to Australia and was shocked to find a snake stowed away in her shoe.  

It’s not just dogs who chase their own tails

Why movie posters all use the same font

Wanna see two flat-Earthers own themselves?

Uhh, that’s not fish

Dave Grohl’s incredible story about losing his wallet

[youtube:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JntjzuI5rGM

A good song

Email dan.gartland@simail.com with any feedback or follow me on Twitter for approximately one half-decent baseball joke per week. Bookmark this page to see previous editions of Hot Clicks and find the newest edition every day. By popular request I’ve made a Spotify playlist of the music featured here. Visit our Extra Mustard page throughout each day for more offbeat sports stories.