CULTURE

Footer Column 2

Footer Legal

Footer Main

Nav Bar

OTHER

SPORTS

Subscribe, at any level, to play

Thanks for your interest in Defector Crosswords!

Become a subscriber today to get unlimited access

Thanks for reading!

Plans start at $8/month.

Subscribers enjoy unlimited, ad-free browsing.

Register to continue

Or click here to subscribe for unlimited, ad-free access!

Our gift to you: This year's post is unlocked. Register your email to get even more free articles.

Welcome to the 2025 Hater's Guide!

Just register your email:

This blog is free to read.

This is Defector, a new sports blog and media company. We made this place together, we own it together, we run it together. Without access, without favor, without discretion, and without interference.

Defector

Australian Football

Better Hate An Owner

Bowling

Chess

Climbing

Cricket

Curling

Cycling

Darts

Death To The NCAA

Disc Sports

Gaelic Football

Gambling

Golf

High School Sports

Horse Racing

Hurling

Infinite Replay

Jamboroo

Lacrosse

Olympics

Parasports

Pro Softball

Pro Wrestling

Racing

Rugby

Running

Skateboarding

Soccer

Sports Highlight Of The Day

Tennis

The Fights

The Great Outdoors

Volleyball

Why Your Team Sucks

Wings Week

Sports

Barry Petchesky

MILAN, ITALY - FEBRUARY 22: Jack Hughes #86 of Team United States celebrates scoring the game-winning goal in overtime during the Men's Gold Medal match between Canada and the United States on day 16 of the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic games at Milano Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena on February 22, 2026 in Milan, Italy. Team United States defeated Team Canada 2-1 in overtime to win the Gold medal. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)

Hockey Boy Wants His Hockey Puck

Ray Ratto

Auston Matthews of the Toronto Maple Leafs kneels on the ice after being kneed by Radko Gudas of the Anaheim Mighty Ducks on March 12, 2026 in Toronto.

Auston Matthews Is Hurt And The Maple Leafs Are Burnt Toast

BUFFALO, NEW YORK - MARCH 12: Tage Thompson #72 of the Buffalo Sabres follows through on his shot during an NHL game against the Washington Capitals on March 12, 2026 at KeyBank Center in Buffalo, New York. (Photo by Bill Wippert/NHLI via Getty Images)

That Puck Must Have Said Something About Tage Thompson’s Mother

Scott Sabourin of the Tampa Bay Lightning fights Sam Carrick of the Buffalo Sabres on March 8, 2026. The shadows look cool.

The Sabres And Lightning Brawled, Scored, And Cemented A Wild New Rivalry

Lauren Theisen

Nathan MacKinnon #29 of the Colorado Avalanche scores a goal during a shootout after overtime to win the game against the Minnesota Wild

I Have So Many Nice Things To Say About The Avalanche And The Wild

Connor McDavid #97 of the Edmonton Oilers faces off against Sebastian Aho

I Bought A Ticket To The Connor McDavid Show And A Hurricanes Game Broke Out

NEWARK, NJ - MARCH 04: Auston Matthews #34 of the Toronto Maple Leafs chats with William Nylander #88 during a game between the Toronto Maple Leafs and New Jersey Devils at Prudential Center on March 4, 2026 in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo by Andrew Mordzynski/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

It’s Angst Day In Canada’s Angst Capital

A general view of the exterior of the Saddledome

It’s A Dome That’s Shaped Like A Saddle

<a href="https://twitter.com/petesegall?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Pete Segall</a> lives in Chicago. His fiction has appeared in The Bennington Review, Conjunctions, The Drift, and elsewhere.

Pete Segall

A collage featuring three of the different paperback covers for "Cleo Birdwell"'s 1980 novel Amazons.

Arts And Culture

Don DeLillo’s Funniest Novel Is A 1980 Hockey Sex Romp He Won’t Acknowledge

The U.S. Olympic men's ice hockey team arrives for U.S. President Donald Trump's State of the Union

The U.S. Hockey Men Spoil The Fantasy

MILAN, ITALY - FEBRUARY 22: goalkeeper Connor Hellebuyck of United States celebrates winning the gold medal during the Ice Hockey Men's Gold Medal Game match between Canada and USA on day sixteen of the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic games at Milano Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena on February 22, 2026 in Milan, Italy. (Photo by Andrea Branca/Eurasia Sport Images/Getty Images)

Team USA Had The Golden Goalie

Jack Hughes #86 of Team United States celebrates after their gold-medal win

Jack Hughes Sheds Blood And Teeth For His Country, U.S. Wins Olympic Gold

MILAN, ITALY - FEBRUARY 18: Quinn Hughes #43 of Team United States celebrate his victory goal in overtime with Matthew Tkachuk #19 and Jack Hughes #86 during the Ice Hockey Men's Play-off Quarterfinals match between Team United States and Team Sweden on day twelve of the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic games at Milano Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena on February 18, 2026 in Milan, Italy. (Photo by Xavier Laine/Getty Images)

Quinn Hughes Almost Smiled

MILAN, ITALY - FEBRUARY 18: Mitch Marner of Team Canada celebrates a goal during the Ice Hockey Men Quarterfinals match between Canada vs Czechia on day twelve of the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic games at Milano Santa Giulia Ice Hockey Arena on February 18, 2026 in Milan, Italy. (Photo by Stefano Guidi/Getty Images)

Canada Took A Czech Beating And Survived

MILAN, ITALY - FEBRUARY 11: Elias Pettersson #40 of Sweden tries to score against Goalie Damian Clara #i20 of Italy during the Men's Preliminary Group B match between Sweden and Italy on day five of the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic games at Milano Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena on February 11, 2026 in Milan, Italy. (Photo by RvS.Media/Robert Hradil/Getty Images)

Damian Clara Was Italy’s Improbable Bastion

EDMONTON, CANADA - JANUARY 22: Sidney Crosby #87 of the Pittsburgh Penguins awaits a face-off during the second period of the game against the Edmonton Oilers at Rogers Place on January 22, 2026, in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. (Photo by Andy Devlin/NHLI via Getty Images)

Sidney Crosby Is A Miracle

Dylan Larkin #71 of the Detroit Red Wings celebrates scoring an overtime winning goal against the Toronto Maple Leafs

Dylan Larkin Overtime Winners Are Sweeter Than Ever Before

PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA - JANUARY 08: Garnet Hathaway #19 of the Philadelphia Flyers looks on during a game against the Toronto Maple Leafs at Xfinity Mobile Arena on January 08, 2026 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Emilee Chinn/Getty Images)

I Award Garnet Hathaway 4 Patrik Stefans Out Of 10

SUNRISE, FLORIDA - JANUARY 19: Goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky #72 of the Florida Panthers fights with Goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic #33 of the San Jose Sharks at the Amerant Bank Arena on January 19, 2026 in Sunrise, Florida. (Photo by Eliot J. Schechter/NHLI via Getty Images)

2026 Is For Fighting

BUFFALO, NEW YORK - JANUARY 15: Tage Thompson #72 of the Buffalo Sabres celebrates during the third period of an NHL game against the Montreal Canadiens on January 15, 2026 at KeyBank Center in Buffalo, New York. (Photo by Ben Ludeman/NHLI via Getty Images)

Nobody Loves An Ex-Loser Like Buffalo

The Ottawa Senators celebrate a goal during the first period of the National Hockey League game between the Ottawa Senators and the New York Rangers

The Three Words That Best Describe The New York Rangers Are As Follows: Stink, Stank, Stunk

Dustin Wolf #32 of the Calgary Flames looses control of the puck as Joel Hanley #44 defends against Charlie Coyle #3 of the Columbus Blue Jackets during the third period of the game

The Blue Jackets Are The Fun Kind Of Bad Team

Jonathan Quick #32 of the New York Rangers reacts to a second period goal by Eeli Tolvanen #20 of the Seattle Kraken at Madison Square Garden

The World’s Angriest Rangers Fans Might Be Right

OTTAWA, ON - NOVEMBER 14: Ottawa Senators Mascot Spartacat in the crowd during second period National Hockey League action between the Philadelphia Flyers and Ottawa Senators on November 14, 2024, at Canadian Tire Centre in Ottawa, ON, Canada. (Photo by Richard A. Whittaker/Icon Sportswire)

The Ottawa Senators Are Having A Normal One

Macklin Celebrini #71 of the San Jose Sharks skates with the puck against the Los Angeles Kings during the third period at Crypto.com Arena on January 07, 2026 in Los Angeles, California

NHL