NEWARK, N.J. (AP) — The New Jersey Devils have discovered their game over the past week and on Saturday, Jack Hughes found his with a three-goal performance for his team’s fourth-straight victory, this time over the rival Rangers.
The 24-year-old center — who scored the gold medal-winning goal to lift Team USA 2-1 over Canada in Italy on Feb. 22 — heard cascading chants of “U-S-A, U-S-A” at Prudential Center after he scored on a breakaway to put the Devils up 5-3 late in the third period, then again when he completed his fourth-career hat trick with an empty-net goal in the closing seconds.
Hughes has been feted since his international moment of glory, appearing on “Saturday Night Live,” “The Tonight Show” and many other talk shows as the country — even Rangers fans — have been thrilled by the U.S. team winning a gold medal for the first time since the “Miracle on Ice” in Lake Placid in 1980.
“After the Olympics, I’ve had Ranger fans chanting for me. They are a great fan base and proud Americans. I think it’s really cool that happened and it will continue with the Devils fan base,’’ said Hughes, who has 19 goals in 24 career games against the Rangers.
Hughes' hat trick was the first by a Devil against the Rangers in the regular season since Scott Gomez did it on Dec. 26, 1999 at Madison Square Garden.
Hughes hadn't scored in his first five games with the Devils since the Olympic break. Scoring three — and seeing red Devils hats rain down — to help the team climb back into the playoff race remains foremost as gold-medal victory resonates in NHL arenas.
“We’re on a good little run here. We have to be very present, very in the moment. All we can worry about is one period of time and keep our game going,’’ he said. “We’re finally healthy. When the group starts to roll, everyone is feeling confident about their game. We’re in a good groove right now.”
Devils coach Sheldon Keefe marveled at the energy in the building, leading to a solid matinee performance as New Jersey tries to rise in the standings with less than six weeks left on the schedule.
“It’s noticeable when you play the Rangers. There was a little more buzz on a Saturday afternoon,’’ Keefe said. “Jack’s goal was huge power-play goal for us. Then I wanted to keep getting him out there. And it worked out great with the ‘U-S-A’ chants.”
Rangers coach Mike Sullivan, who coached Team USA last month in Milan, saw Hughes’ elite skill on display often in Italy.
“I think the world of Jack. He’s a really good player, he’s a great person,’’ Sullivan said after his team lost for the 15th time in their last 19 games. “But when we play him we want to beat him. He’s a dangerous guy in particular on power plays and we just gave him too many looks.”
Hughes, the top overall pick by New Jersey in the 2019 draft, spent extra time talking to the media after Saturday’s win as the realization of his national star power continues to increase within the context of his leadership role with the Devils.
“Obviously the Olympic stuff is going to die down at some point. I’m so proud to be part of that group and we’re going to enjoy that,’’ he said. “With that being said, being back in New Jersey has been the best thing for me. Being back to playing hockey. That’s where I have the most fun.”
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New Jersey Devils' Jack Hughes (86) speaks to fans before an NHL hockey game against the Buffalo Sabres Wednesday, Feb. 25, 2026, in Newark, N.J. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)
DORAL, Fla. (AP) — President Donald Trump said Saturday that it was inconsequential if Russia has provided Iran with information to help Tehran target U.S. military personnel and assets in the Middle East as the week-old war rages.
The president dismissed the import of such information-sharing after he attended the dignified transfer for six Army reservists who were killed in a drone strike in Kuwait the day after the U.S. and Israel launched a war on Iran that has unsettled the global economy.
Trump stopped short of confirming reports by The Associated Press and other news outlets that U.S. intelligence officials believe Russia has provided Iran with such targeting information. But if Moscow is passing on such details, he said Iran was getting little out of it.
“If you take a look at what’s happened to Iran in the last week, if they’re getting information, it’s not helping them much,” Trump told reporters on Air Force One as he flew to Miami, where he's spending the rest of the weekend.
The president also waved off a question about how Russia assisting Iran in such a way might affect his view of the U.S.-Russia relationship.
“They’d say we do it against them,” Trump responded. “Wouldn’t they say that we do it against them?”
Ukraine, in the four years since it was invaded by Russia, has received U.S. intelligence to help defend against incoming missiles from Russia as well as to help Kyiv hit certain Russian targets.
Downplaying the significance of Russia handing off battlespace intelligence to Iran came after the U.S. Treasury Department announced earlier this week that it was temporarily allowing India to keep buying crude oil and petroleum products from Russia for a month, until April 4.
The administration decision to grant the world's most populous country a temporary exemption faced bipartisan blowback. Critics charge that Trump was giving Russia a break that will provide Moscow with badly needed revenue as it looks to keep funding its war machine.
Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb., condemned the move, saying in a post on X that “weakness towards Russia is appalling."
Rep. Ted Lieu, D-Calif., in his own X post directed at Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, also decried the administration's decision.
“Reverse your decision to lift oil sanctions on Russia. It is traitorous conduct for you to help Russia,” Lieu said. “Meanwhile, Russia is assisting Iran in targeting American troops.”
Trump has decided to give India leeway on oil purchases from Russia as global oil prices surge and investors across sectors worry about how long the Iran war will last.
The waiver for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government followed Trump announcing weeks ago that he was cutting tariffs on India after their officials agreed to reduce its reliance on cheap Russian crude.
India has taken advantage of reduced Russian oil prices as much of the world has sought to isolate Moscow for its February 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
The price of oil has surged higher and shows no signs of halting a week into a war that the U.S. and Israel launched and has widened through the Middle East as Tehran strikes back. Ships that carry roughly 20 million barrels of oil a day are unable to safely pass through the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow mouth of the Persian Gulf that is bordered on its north side by Iran.
The shipping disruption and damage to key Middle East oil and gas facilities has interrupted supplies from some of the world’s largest oil producers.
Asked whether he was willing to take other steps to ease oil prices, Trump said that “if there were some, I would do it, just to take a little of the pressure off.”
He appeared Saturday to wave off, at least for now, the possibility of tapping the nation’s Strategic Petroleum Reserve, saying the U.S. has a “lot of oil.”
The reserve — a supply of oil that the U.S. government can tap in case of emergencies — held more than 415 million barrels as of the end of last month, up from about 395 million barrels at this time in 2025. In total, when full, the SPR can hold more than 700 million barrels.
“We’ve got a lot of oil. Our country has a tremendous amount,” Trump said. “There’s a lot of oil out there. That’ll get healed very quickly.”
Kim reported from Washington.
President Donald Trump gestures after stepping off Air Force One, Saturday, March 7, 2026, at Miami International Airport in Miami. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
President Donald Trump speaks to reporters as White House Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff, center, and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth listen while traveling aboard Air Force One en route from Dover Air Force Base, Del., to Miami, Saturday, March 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
