2018 Stanley Cup Finals, Path to the Finals, Vegas Golden Knights
Las Vegas was awarded as the NHL's 31st franchise on June 22, 2016, to begin to play for the 2017–18 season. On April 13, 2017, the team announced the hiring of their inaugural head coach, Gerard Gallant. The team then participated in the 2017 NHL Expansion Draft on June 21, selecting an available player from all of the other 30 NHL teams. Some notable selections included goalie Marc-Andre Fleury, who had won three Stanley Cups as a member of the Pittsburgh Penguins, winger James Neal from the Nashville Predators, and Jonathan Marchessault from the Florida Panthers. Fleury was left exposed by the Penguins because of the emergence of Matt Murray. The Panthers, who had salary cap issues, traded Reilly Smith to the Golden Knights in exchange for Vegas selecting Marchessault.


2018 Stanley Cup Finals, Path to the Finals, Vegas Golden Knights
The team started winning, despite Fleury being injured for most of the first months of the season. The team relied on four other goaltenders while their starter was injured. Instead of being sellers trying to unload players with one-year contracts by the trade deadline, Vegas became surprise buyers, acquiring Ryan Reaves from the Penguins and Tomas Tatar from the Detroit Red Wings.


2018 Stanley Cup Finals, Path to the Finals, Vegas Golden Knights
On March 26, 2018, Vegas became the first team to make the playoffs in their inaugural season in the league since the Edmonton Oilers and Hartford Whalers in the 1979–80 season. Following that achievement, on March 31, Vegas became the first modern-era expansion team from any of the four major sports and the first NHL team since the 1926–27 New York Rangers to win their division in their inaugural season (excluding the 1967–68 Philadelphia Flyers, as all teams in the West Division that year were expansion teams). The Golden Knights ended up finishing the regular season with 109 points (51–24–7). In the playoffs, Vegas swept the Los Angeles Kings in four games, defeated the San Jose Sharks in six games, and eliminated the Winnipeg Jets in the Western Conference Finals in five games.


2018 Stanley Cup Finals, Path to the Finals, Vegas Golden Knights
With Vegas' trip to the 2018 Finals, a brand-new team in the league has now reached the Stanley Cup Finals every 50 years dating back to 1918. The Toronto Arenas reached the 1918 Stanley Cup Finals and won the Cup, but this was the first year of the new NHL (after every team except the Toronto Blueshirts left the National Hockey Association). The St. Louis Blues reached the 1968 Stanley Cup Finals and got swept by the Montreal Canadiens.


2018 Stanley Cup Finals, Path to the Finals, Vegas Golden Knights
However, the Blues and five other brand-new expansion teams all entered the league at the same time and were all placed in the West Division, with the Original Six comprising the East Division. The playoffs were structured so that one of the newly minted teams was guaranteed a berth in the Finals. In contrast, the Golden Knights were the first true expansion team in NHL history to advance all the way to the Finals while not playing in an all-expansion division.


2018 Stanley Cup Finals, Path to the Finals, Vegas Golden Knights
The Golden Knights were only the second captainless team since 1973 to be in the Finals, and the first since the New York Rangers in 2014.


2018 Stanley Cup Finals, Game summaries, Game one
Both teams scored twice in the opening period. The first goal came from Vegas Golden Knights defenceman Colin Miller whose slap shot went past Capitals goaltender Braden Holtby. Washington struck back later in the period as both Brett Connolly and Nicklas Backstrom scored 42 seconds apart. William Karlsson then snuck the puck in between Holtby and the left post to tie the game. Early in the second period, a rebound off the glass came to Deryk Engelland who passed to an open Reilly Smith firing one past Holtby.


2018 Stanley Cup Finals, Game summaries, Game one
Capitals defenceman John Carlson tied up the score after some nice passing from the defender and T. J. Oshie left himself wide open for the goal. In the third period, Tom Wilson redirected Alexander Ovechkin's shot past Vegas goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury to take the lead in the game. However, Vegas responded 1:41 later as Ryan Reaves went top-shelf to tie the game yet again. This goal proved to be controversial, as Ryan Reaves illegally cross-checked John Carlson to get into position to score. Tomas Nosek was able to score for Vegas later in the period, taking the pass from Shea Theodore. Vegas kept the lead in the penultimate minutes, grabbing an empty-net goal in the final minute to finish the game 6–4.


2018 Stanley Cup Finals, Game summaries, Game two
During the first period of game two, James Neal took a pass from Luca Sbisa, firing a wrist shot past Braden Holtby. The Capitals tied the game during a four-on-four when Lars Eller shot into an empty net from Michal Kempny's pass. During the second period, Golden Knights rookie Alex Tuch was penalized for cross-checking, and on the ensuing power-play, Capitals captain Alexander Ovechkin fired a shot from a tight angle to give Washington the lead. Brooks Orpik extended the Capitals' lead to two goals when his shot deflected off Alex Tuch past Marc-Andre Fleury. Vegas cut the deficit by one goal when T. J. Oshie interfered with Colin Miller and Shea Theodore scored on the power-play. In the third period Holtby backstopped Washington to the victory, stopping the final fifteen shots from Vegas to win 3–2.


2018 Stanley Cup Finals, Game summaries, Game three
After a tense first period in which neither team scored, Alexander Ovechkin scored early in the second period to give Washington the lead. Evgeny Kuznetsov, who was believed to have suffered an arm injury the game prior, scored 11:40 after Ovechkin, extending Washington's lead to two. Tomas Nosek scored off of a Braden Holtby giveaway to cut the deficit in half early in the third period.


2018 Stanley Cup Finals, Game summaries, Game three
However, 10 minutes later Shea Theodore mishandled the puck in his own zone and Jay Beagle capitalized on the error, making a pass to an open Devante Smith-Pelly who restored the two-goal lead for Washington. The Capitals played defensively for the final minutes of the game to win 3–1, and took the series lead.


2018 Stanley Cup Finals, Game summaries, Game four
During the first period, a penalty called on Colin Miller for tripping allowed T. J. Oshie to give Washington the first lead. The Capitals extended the lead after Evgeny Kuznetsov fed a pass to Tom Wilson who fired a wrist shot past Marc-Andre Fleury. Devante Smith-Pelly then gave Washington a 3–0 lead after a pass by Matt Niskanen deflected off Vegas forward Jonathan Marchessault to the stick of Smith-Pelly, who scored top-shelf on Fleury.


2018 Stanley Cup Finals, Game summaries, Game four
Even with the Golden Knights more than doubling the shots of Washington, John Carlson gave the Capitals a 4–0 lead, firing a slap shot on the power-play. In the third period, Vegas ended the shutout as James Neal scored just as Evgeny Kuznetsov's tripping penalty had expired. Reilly Smith cut the deficit to two goals, scoring on the backhand past Braden Holtby. Washington restored a three-goal lead during a four-on-four; as Nicklas Backstrom fed an open Michal Kempny, firing the shot past Fleury. Brett Connolly added an insurance goal with less than two minutes remaining, giving the Capitals a commanding 6–2 lead.


2018 Stanley Cup Finals, Game summaries, Game five
Although no goals were scored in the first period, the Capitals had the shot advantage nine to seven. During the second period, Tom Wilson passed to a speedy Jakub Vrana going past the Golden Knight's defender and beating Marc-Andre Fleury to take the lead. The Golden Knights tied the game soon after as former-Capitals defenceman Nate Schmidt shot through a flurry of players and the puck deflected off of Matt Niskanen past Braden Holtby. Alexander Ovechkin gave the Capitals the lead again on the power play, firing a shot onto Fleury, bouncing off his back and into the net.


2018 Stanley Cup Finals, Game summaries, Game five
With the goal, it broke a tie with John Druce for most goals in a postseason by a Capitals player with fifteen. David Perron tied the game for Vegas, scoring his first goal of the postseason via deflection. Coach Barry Trotz of the Capitals challenged the play on goaltender interference as Perron appeared to hit the skate of Holtby as he was battling for position; the challenge was unsuccessful. An open Reilly Smith gave the Golden Knights the lead in the final minute of the second period, taking the pass from Alex Tuch.


2018 Stanley Cup Finals, Game summaries, Game five
Halfway through the third period, Devante Smith-Pelly tied the game for the Capitals. Less than three minutes later, a shot came from the slot and went between Fleury's pads, but, unbeknownst to Fleury and his defensemen, the puck sneaked through and was lying in view just behind him, and Lars Eller forehanded it into the net to give the Capitals the lead with 7:37 left. With two minutes left, Vegas pulled Fleury for an extra attacker.


2018 Stanley Cup Finals, Game summaries, Game five
At 18:11 of the third period, the game clock froze; however, the next stoppage in play occurred at 28.9 seconds remaining, allowing the clock to be readjusted. Nevertheless, the attempts of the Golden Knights were thwarted as the Capitals held on to win the game and their first Stanley Cup. Ovechkin was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy.


2018 Stanley Cup Finals, Team rosters, Vegas Golden Knights
Note: Deryk Engelland served as the Golden Knights unofficial team captain during the 2018 Stanley Cup playoffs. Engelland was the alternate captain with the longest tenure in the league on the roster at the time of the playoffs.


2018 Stanley Cup Finals, Stanley Cup engraving
The Stanley Cup was presented to Capitals captain Alexander Ovechkin by NHL commissioner Gary Bettman following the Capitals 4–3 win over the Golden Knights in game five.


2018 Stanley Cup Finals, Stanley Cup engraving
The following Capitals players and staff had their names engraved on the Stanley Cup:


2018 Stanley Cup Finals, Television and radio
In Canada, the series was broadcast by Sportsnet and CBC Television in English, and TVA Sports in French. In the U.S., the Finals were split between NBC (Games 1, 4 and 5) and NBCSN (Games 2 and 3).


2018 Stanley Cup Finals, Television and radio
In the U.S., with an average of 4.918 million viewers across all games, they were the highest-rated Stanley Cup Finals without an "Original Six" team since 1994. Game 5 drew 6.714 million viewers, making it the most-watched game 5 since 2002.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs
The 2018 Stanley Cup playoffs was the playoff tournament of the National Hockey League (NHL). The playoffs began on April 11, 2018, after the 2017–18 regular season and concluded on June 7, 2018, with the Washington Capitals winning their first Stanley Cup in franchise history defeating the Vegas Golden Knights four games to one in the Stanley Cup Finals.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs
The Nashville Predators made the playoffs as the Presidents' Trophy winners with the most points (i.e. best record) during the regular season. The Pittsburgh Penguins increased their post-season appearance streak to twelve seasons, the current longest streak.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs
The Vegas Golden Knights became the first team to make the playoffs in their inaugural season in the league since the 1979–80 Hartford Whalers and the Edmonton Oilers. They also became the first expansion team to make the playoffs in their inaugural season since the 1967 NHL expansion. From there, they eventually became the first team since the 1967–68 St. Louis Blues to win their respective conference, and reach the Stanley Cup Finals in their inaugural season.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs
The only difference is that the 1967–68 season through to the 1969–70 season ensured that an expansion team would be able to reach the Stanley Cup Finals. For the fourth time in league history (2000, 2001, 2007), only two Original Six teams, the Boston Bruins and Toronto Maple Leafs, clinched a berth for the playoffs. For the first time since 1966, no playoff games were played in the state of New York. For the fifth time in eight years, all three California-based teams made the playoffs.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs
For the first time in league history, the Montreal Canadiens and the Detroit Red Wings missed the playoffs in the same year. For the first time since 1969, both the Chicago Blackhawks and the Detroit Red Wings missed the playoffs in the same season. For the first time since 2009, no California-based team reached the Conference Finals. For the first and only time since 2012, the New Jersey Devils made the playoffs.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs
The playoffs featured ten overtime games, the fewest since 2000.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, Playoff seeds
This was the fifth year in which the top three teams in each division made the playoffs, along with two wild cards in each conference (for a total of eight playoff teams from each conference).


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, Playoff bracket
In each round, teams competed in a best-of-seven series following a 2–2–1–1–1 format (scores in the bracket indicate the number of games won in each best-of-seven series). The team with home ice advantage played at home for games one and two (and games five and seven, if necessary), and the other team was at home for games three and four (and game six, if necessary). The top three teams in each division made the playoffs, along with two wild cards in each conference, for a total of eight teams from each conference.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, Playoff bracket
In the First Round, the lower seeded wild card in the conference played against the division winner with the best record while the other wild card played against the other division winner, and both wild cards were de facto #4 seeds. The other series matched the second and third place teams from the divisions. In the first two rounds, home ice advantage was awarded to the team with the better seed. Thereafter, it was awarded to the team that had the better regular season record.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, First Round, Eastern Conference First Round, (A1) Tampa Bay Lightning vs. (WC2) New Jersey Devils
The Tampa Bay Lightning finished first in the Atlantic Division earning 113 points. New Jersey finished as the Eastern Conference's second wild card, earning 97 points. This was the third playoff meeting between these teams with New Jersey winning both previous series. They last met in the 2007 Eastern Conference Quarterfinals, which New Jersey won in six games. New Jersey won all three games in this year's regular season series.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, First Round, Eastern Conference First Round, (A1) Tampa Bay Lightning vs. (WC2) New Jersey Devils
The Lightning defeated the Devils in five games. Although Taylor Hall scored his first playoff goal in game one, the Devils were beaten 5–2 as Ondrej Palat recorded three points for Tampa Bay. In game two, a four-goal barrage by the Lightning during the second period forced Devils goaltender Keith Kinkaid to be pulled. Tampa won the game 5–3. The Devils recovered in game three as Taylor Hall scored a goal and two assists in a 5–2 victory. J. T. Miller and Nikita Kucherov both had three points in a 3–1 victory for the Lightning in game four. In game five, Kucherov's goal was the series-winner as the Lightning held off a late attack by the Devils to win 3–1.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, First Round, Eastern Conference First Round, (A2) Boston Bruins vs. (A3) Toronto Maple Leafs
The Boston Bruins finished second in the Atlantic Division earning 112 points. The Toronto Maple Leafs earned 105 points to finish third in the Atlantic Division. This was the fifteenth playoff meeting between these two teams with Toronto winning eight of the fourteen previous series. They last met in the 2013 Eastern Conference Quarterfinals, which Boston won in seven games. Toronto won three of the four games in this year's regular season series.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, First Round, Eastern Conference First Round, (A2) Boston Bruins vs. (A3) Toronto Maple Leafs
The Bruins defeated the Maple Leafs in seven games. Tuukka Rask made 26 saves for the Bruins in game one, winning the game 5–1. During the game, Maple Leafs forward Nazem Kadri was given a five-minute major for a charging penalty for his hit on Tommy Wingels; he would later be suspended for three games. David Pastrnak had a hat trick and three assists in a 7–3 victory for the Bruins in game two, becoming the first player since Claude Giroux in 2012 to score a hat trick and three assists.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, First Round, Eastern Conference First Round, (A2) Boston Bruins vs. (A3) Toronto Maple Leafs
In game three, Patrick Marleau scored twice for the Maple Leafs in a 4–2 victory. Pastrnak assisted twice on two goals in a 3–1 triumph for the Bruins, taking a 3–1 series lead in the process. In game five, Toronto prevented a come-back by Boston, fending off the Bruins 4–3 as Frederik Andersen made 42 saves for the Maple Leafs. Nikita Zaitsev assisted twice in a 3–1 Maple Leafs victory, forcing a seventh game in the series. In game seven, Bruins forward Patrice Bergeron scored a goal and recorded two assists in a 7–4 victory to advance his team to the second round.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, First Round, Eastern Conference First Round, (M1) Washington Capitals vs. (WC1) Columbus Blue Jackets
The Washington Capitals finished first in the Metropolitan Division earning 105 points. The Columbus Blue Jackets finished as the Eastern Conference's first wild card earning 97 points. This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams. Washington won three of the four games in this year's regular season series.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, First Round, Eastern Conference First Round, (M1) Washington Capitals vs. (WC1) Columbus Blue Jackets
The Capitals came back from a 2–0 series deficit to defeat the Blue Jackets in six games. Columbus came back from a two-goal deficit in game one to force overtime, during which Artemi Panarin scored 6:02 into the extra session to give the Blue Jackets their first lead in a playoff series. The Blue Jackets overcame another two-goal deficit in game two, taking the game into overtime yet again. Matt Calvert scored the game-winning goal for Columbus as they took a 2–0 series lead. The Capitals took game three 3–2 in double-overtime as Lars Eller scored the game winner.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, First Round, Eastern Conference First Round, (M1) Washington Capitals vs. (WC1) Columbus Blue Jackets
The Capitals tied the series after game four as Washington's Alexander Ovechkin had a goal and an assist in a 4–1 victory. Nicklas Backstrom's tip-in was the overtime-winner for the Capitals in game five as they prevented a two-goal comeback by the Blue Jackets. In game six, Capitals captain Alexander Ovechkin scored twice to seal the series for Washington, winning the affair 6–3. With playoff series victories by Winnipeg and Vegas this season, Columbus became the last active NHL franchise without a playoff series win until they defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2019.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, First Round, Eastern Conference First Round, (M2) Pittsburgh Penguins vs. (M3) Philadelphia Flyers
The Pittsburgh Penguins finished second in the Metropolitan Division earning 100 points. The Philadelphia Flyers earned 98 points to finish third in the Metropolitan. This was the seventh playoff meeting between these two rivals with Philadelphia winning four of the six previous series. They last met in the 2012 Eastern Conference Quarterfinals, which Philadelphia won in six games. Pittsburgh won all four games in this year's regular season series.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, First Round, Eastern Conference First Round, (M2) Pittsburgh Penguins vs. (M3) Philadelphia Flyers
The Penguins defeated the Flyers in six games. In game one, Sidney Crosby capped off a hat trick to end a 7–0 rout over the Flyers. The Flyers defeated the Penguins in game two, riding on Sean Couturier's goal and two assists in a 5–1 victory. Pittsburgh took game three 5–1 as Crosby recorded a goal and three assists. Matt Murray recorded a shutout in game four stopping all 26 shots he faced in a 5–0 victory for Pittsburgh. Prior to game five, Flyers captain Claude Giroux guaranteed his team a victory.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, First Round, Eastern Conference First Round, (M2) Pittsburgh Penguins vs. (M3) Philadelphia Flyers
Giroux scored the first goal of the game, and Couturier scored game-winning goal with 1:15 left in regulation time to force a sixth game in a 4–2 victory for Philadelphia. In game six, Sean Couturier recorded a hat trick on a torn MCL. Jake Guentzel recorded a natural hat trick and scored four goals in total, including two within ten seconds of each other, to seal the series for the Penguins in an 8–5 victory.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, First Round, Western Conference First Round, (C1) Nashville Predators vs. (WC2) Colorado Avalanche
The Nashville Predators earned the Presidents' Trophy as the NHL's best regular season team with 117 points. The Colorado Avalanche finished as the Western Conference's second wild card earning 95 points. This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams. Nashville won all four games in this year's regular season series.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, First Round, Western Conference First Round, (C1) Nashville Predators vs. (WC2) Colorado Avalanche
The Predators defeated the Avalanche in six games. Filip Forsberg scored twice in Nashville's 5–2 game one victory, one of which was considered a highlight-reel goal. Nashville had five different players score in their 5–4 victory over Colorado in game two to take a 2–0 series lead. Nathan MacKinnon scored twice and Gabriel Landeskog had a goal and two assists to take game three for the Avalanche 5–3. In game four, Pekka Rinne made 31 saves for the Predators who took a 3–1 series lead with a 3–2 win. Andrew Hammond made 44 saves and Sven Andrighetto scored with 1:28 left in the third period to force a sixth game for the Avalanche in a 2–1 triumph. The Predators shut out the Avalanche in game six, with Rinne stopping all 22 shots he faced in a 5–0 victory.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, First Round, Western Conference First Round, (C2) Winnipeg Jets vs. (C3) Minnesota Wild
The Winnipeg Jets finished second in the Central Division earning 114 points. The Minnesota Wild earned 101 points to finish third in the Central. This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams. Winnipeg won three of the four games in this year's regular season series.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, First Round, Western Conference First Round, (C2) Winnipeg Jets vs. (C3) Minnesota Wild
The Jets defeated the Wild in five games and earned their first playoff series victory in franchise history after entering the league in 1999 as the Atlanta Thrashers. The Jets also became the first Winnipeg-based NHL team to advance past the opening round of the playoffs since 1987. After firing 40 shots on Minnesota goaltender Devan Dubnyk, the Jets won game one 3–2, winning their first playoff game in franchise history and the city's first playoff victory since 1996, after which the original Jets relocated to Phoenix.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, First Round, Western Conference First Round, (C2) Winnipeg Jets vs. (C3) Minnesota Wild
In game two, Patrik Laine had a goal and an assist to provide the Jets a 4–1 victory as well as a 2–0 series lead. In game three, the Wild scored four goals in the second period to chase Jets goaltender Connor Hellebuyck in a 6–2 affair. Hellebuyck came back in game four, stopping all 30 shots he faced in a 2–0 victory. Hellebuyck continued his shutout streak in game five, stopping another 30 shots after a first period blitz by the Jets to win the series-clinching game 5–0.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, First Round, Western Conference First Round, (P1) Vegas Golden Knights vs. (WC1) Los Angeles Kings
The Vegas Golden Knights finished first in the Pacific Division earning 109 points. The Los Angeles Kings earned 98 points to finish as the Western Conference's first wild card. This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams and the first playoff series for the Golden Knights. These teams split their four-game regular season series.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, First Round, Western Conference First Round, (P1) Vegas Golden Knights vs. (WC1) Los Angeles Kings
The Golden Knights defeated the Kings in a four-game sweep. In game one, Marc-Andre Fleury stopped all 30 shots to give the Golden Knights their first playoff victory. Even though Kings goaltender Jonathan Quick made 54 saves in game two, the Golden Knights topped Los Angeles in double overtime thanks to Erik Haula's goal at 15:23, taking a 2–0 series lead.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, First Round, Western Conference First Round, (P1) Vegas Golden Knights vs. (WC1) Los Angeles Kings
After the Golden Knights took the lead late in the third period of game three with two goals in 21 seconds Vegas pushed the Kings to the brink of elimination with a 3–2 win; Vegas goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury made 37 saves in the victory. In game four, former-King Brayden McNabb scored the only goal of the game for the Golden Knights as they swept Los Angeles for their first playoff series victory.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, First Round, Western Conference First Round, (P1) Vegas Golden Knights vs. (WC1) Los Angeles Kings
This series tied the record for the fewest goals scored by both teams in a best-of-seven playoff series: the Golden Knights scored seven goals to the Kings' three goals for a total of ten goals, tying the record set in 2003. In addition, the 7 goals scored by Vegas is the lowest amount by a series-winning team in NHL history.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, First Round, Western Conference First Round, (P2) Anaheim Ducks vs. (P3) San Jose Sharks
The Anaheim Ducks finished second in the Pacific Division earning 101 points. The San Jose Sharks earned 100 points to finish third in the Pacific Division. This was the second playoff meeting between these teams. They last met in the 2009 Western Conference Quarterfinals, which Anaheim won in six games. San Jose won three of the four games in this year's regular season series.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, First Round, Western Conference First Round, (P2) Anaheim Ducks vs. (P3) San Jose Sharks
The Sharks defeated the Ducks in a four-game sweep. Evander Kane scored twice in his first playoff game and Sharks goaltender Martin Jones posted a 25-save shutout blanking the Ducks 3–0 in game one. In game two, Logan Couture scored a goal and recorded an assist in a 3–2 victory. Martin Jones made 45 saves as the Sharks routed the Ducks 8–1 in game three; eight different players scored for San Jose in the victory. Tomas Hertl broke the tie for San Jose, scoring the series-clinching goal midway through the third period of game four as the Sharks defeated Anaheim 2–1.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, Second Round, Eastern Conference Second Round, (A1) Tampa Bay Lightning vs. (A2) Boston Bruins
This was the second playoff meeting between these two teams. Their only previous series occurred in the 2011 Eastern Conference Final, which Boston won in seven games. Boston won three of the four games in this year's regular season series.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, Second Round, Eastern Conference Second Round, (A1) Tampa Bay Lightning vs. (A2) Boston Bruins
The Lightning defeated the Bruins in five games. In game one, the line of Brad Marchand, Patrice Bergeron, and David Pastrnak combined for eleven points in a 6–2 triumph. Brayden Point scored a goal and recorded three assists in the Lightning's 4–2 victory in game two, evening the series. Ondrej Palat scored twice in the Lightning's 4–1 win in game three taking a 2–1 series lead. Tampa Bay captain Steven Stamkos forced overtime on a controversial goal.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, Second Round, Eastern Conference Second Round, (A1) Tampa Bay Lightning vs. (A2) Boston Bruins
While circling behind the net Bruin defender Charlie McAvoy was hauled down by Nikita Kucherov leading to a turnover deep in the Bruins defensive zone. Daniel Girardi scored the game-winning goal to give the Lightning a 4–3 victory. During game four, Brad Marchand licked the face of Tampa Bay forward Ryan Callahan during a scrum. Marchand received no penalty or further punishment from the League. The Lightning scored twice in the second period of game five to take the lead and Anton Stralman scored an empty-net goal to give Tampa Bay a 3–1 victory and a 4–1 series win.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, Second Round, Eastern Conference Second Round, (M1) Washington Capitals vs. (M2) Pittsburgh Penguins
This was the third consecutive year that these two rivals have met in the second round and was the eleventh overall playoff meeting with Pittsburgh winning nine of the ten previous series. They last met in the previous year's Eastern Conference Second Round which Pittsburgh won in seven games. These teams split their four-game regular season series.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, Second Round, Eastern Conference Second Round, (M1) Washington Capitals vs. (M2) Pittsburgh Penguins
The Capitals defeated the Penguins in six games, defeating Pittsburgh for the second time in franchise history and the first time since 1994. Pittsburgh rallied from a two-goal deficit to take game one 3–2 leading on Jake Guentzel's goal and two assists. In game two, Braden Holtby made 32 saves for Washington, defeating the Penguins 4–1. Alexander Ovechkin scored with 1:07 left in the third period of game three to give the Capitals a 4–3 victory.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, Second Round, Eastern Conference Second Round, (M1) Washington Capitals vs. (M2) Pittsburgh Penguins
During the game, Tom Wilson made an illegal check to the head of rookie Zach Aston-Reese who suffered a broken jaw along with a concussion. Wilson was suspended three games for his action. In game four, Guentzel scored twice for Pittsburgh in a 3–1 victory, evening the series 2–2. Both Evgeny Kuznetsov and Jakub Vrana had a goal and two assists for the Capitals in game five who took a 3–2 series lead after a 6–3 victory. In game six, the Capitals fired 30 shots and Evgeny Kuznetsov's goal in overtime ended the series in a 2–1 victory, moving Washington to the Conference Finals for the first time since 1998.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, Second Round, Western Conference Second Round, (C1) Nashville Predators vs. (C2) Winnipeg Jets
This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams. Nashville won three of the five games in this year's regular season series.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, Second Round, Western Conference Second Round, (C1) Nashville Predators vs. (C2) Winnipeg Jets
The Jets eliminated the Predators in seven games. Mark Scheifele scored twice and Jets goaltender Connor Hellebuyck made 47 saves in game one to defeat the Predators 4–1. In game two, Kevin Fiala scored 5:37 into overtime to give the Predators a 5–4 victory to even the series. The Jets overcame a three-goal deficit in game three with both Blake Wheeler and Dustin Byfuglien scoring twice in a 7–4 win. Pekka Rinne made 32 saves for the Predators in game four, allowing his team to win 2–1 and even the series 2–2.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, Second Round, Western Conference Second Round, (C1) Nashville Predators vs. (C2) Winnipeg Jets
In game five, Kyle Connor scored twice and captain Blake Wheeler provided three assists in the Jets' 6–2 victory. The Predators forced a seventh game following game six in which both Viktor Arvidsson and Filip Forsberg scored twice and recorded an assist along with Pekka Rinne stopping all 34 shots in a 4–0 shutout. After recording a shutout the game prior, Pekka Rinne got pulled for the third time in the series after letting in the first two goals of game seven. His counterpart, Connor Hellebuyck, made 36 saves in the victory as the Jets won the game 5–1, advancing to the Conference Finals for the first time in franchise history.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, Second Round, Western Conference Second Round, (P1) Vegas Golden Knights vs. (P3) San Jose Sharks
This was the first playoff series between these two teams. Vegas won three of the four games in this year's regular season series.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, Second Round, Western Conference Second Round, (P1) Vegas Golden Knights vs. (P3) San Jose Sharks
The Golden Knights defeated the Sharks in six games. In game one, Marc-Andre Fleury stopped all 33 shots he faced and Vegas scored with seven different players to defeat San Jose 7–0. The Sharks used double-overtime to take game two 4–3 as Logan Couture's second goal of the game ended the Golden Knights' playoff winning streak. Game three also went into overtime, however, this time the Golden Knights' William Karlsson got the best of the Sharks, scoring the overtime-winner in a 4–3 victory for Vegas.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, Second Round, Western Conference Second Round, (P1) Vegas Golden Knights vs. (P3) San Jose Sharks
Martin Jones shut out the Golden Knights in game four, stopping all 34 shots he faced, giving the Sharks a 4–0 victory to even the series 2–2. After the Golden Knights put up a 4–0 lead in game five, including two goals from rookie Alex Tuch, the Sharks scored three goals in the third period to come within one goal. However, Vegas halted the comeback when Jonathan Marchessault scored an empty-net goal to secure a 5–3 win. In game six, Marc-Andre Fleury recorded a 28-save shut out in a 3–0 victory to send the Golden Knights to their first Conference Finals.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, Conference Finals, Eastern Conference Final, (A1) Tampa Bay Lightning vs. (M1) Washington Capitals
This was the third playoff meeting between these teams with Tampa Bay winning both previous series. They last met in the 2011 Eastern Conference Semifinals, which Tampa Bay won in a four-game sweep. Also since 2011, this was the first conference final between two division champions. This was the Lightning's fifth appearance in the Conference Finals, and their third in the last four seasons. Tampa Bay last went to the Conference Finals in 2016; they lost to the Pittsburgh Penguins in seven games. This was Washington's third Conference Finals appearance. They last made the Conference Finals in 1998; they defeated the Buffalo Sabres in six games. Tampa Bay won two of the three games in this year's regular season series.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, Conference Finals, Eastern Conference Final, (A1) Tampa Bay Lightning vs. (M1) Washington Capitals
The Capitals defeated the Lightning in seven games. In game one, Washington scored four consecutive goals across the first two periods forcing Tampa Bay coach Jon Cooper to pull goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy; the Capitals won 4–2. Lars Eller and Evgeny Kuznetsov had a goal and two assists in Washington's 6–2 triumph in game two. The Lightning struck back in game three as Victor Hedman potted a goal and two assists in Tampa's 4–2 victory. Andrei Vasilevskiy made 36 saves in game four as the Lightning won the game 4–2 and thus tied the series.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, Conference Finals, Eastern Conference Final, (A1) Tampa Bay Lightning vs. (M1) Washington Capitals
In game five, Ryan Callahan had a goal and an assist for the Lightning as they hung on for 3–2 victory. In game six, Capitals goaltender Braden Holtby made 24 saves in a 3–0 shutout victory to force a seventh game. Braden Holtby stopped all 29 shots and Andre Burakovsky scored twice in game seven for Washington, advancing the Capitals to the Finals for the first time since 1998 in a 4–0 victory.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, Conference Finals, Western Conference Final, (C2) Winnipeg Jets vs. (P1) Vegas Golden Knights
This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams. This was the first time since 2003 where two teams were making their Conference Finals debut. The Jets advanced to the Conference Finals for the first time in their 19th year (seventh in Winnipeg) after entering the league in 1999 as the Atlanta Thrashers; they also became the first Winnipeg-based team in league history to make it past the second round. Vegas made the Conference Finals in their inaugural season becoming the first expansion team since the St. Louis Blues in 1968 to advance past the second round of the playoffs. Vegas won two of the three games in this year's regular season series.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, Conference Finals, Western Conference Final, (C2) Winnipeg Jets vs. (P1) Vegas Golden Knights
The Golden Knights defeated the Jets in five games. In game one, Mark Scheifele scored a goal and recorded an assist in a 4–2 triumph over the Golden Knights. Jonathan Marchessault scored twice in Vegas' bounce-back win in game two, evening the series after a 3–1 victory. Marc-Andre Fleury made 33 saves for Vegas, including 15 in the third period of game three, to take a 4–2 victory. Fleury made an additional 35 saves in game four with Vegas forward Reilly Smith scoring the game-winning goal 13:02 into the third period. In game five, the Golden Knights held onto a 2–1 lead, after Ryan Reaves scored in the second period to break the tie, to win the game and became the first expansion team to move onto the Stanley Cup Finals since the St. Louis Blues in 1968.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, Stanley Cup Finals
This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams. Vegas was making their Finals debut in their inaugural season, becoming the first team since the aforementioned St. Louis Blues to make the Finals in their first season. Washington made their second Finals appearance. Their only previous appearance in the Finals ended in a four-game sweep by the Detroit Red Wings in 1998. This was the first Finals since 2007 to feature two teams that had not previously won a Stanley Cup. Vegas won both games in this year's regular season series.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, Player statistics, Goaltenders
This is a combined table of the top five goaltenders based on goals against average and the top five goaltenders based on save percentage, with at least 420 minutes. The table is sorted by GAA, and the criteria for inclusion are bolded.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, Television
This was the seventh postseason under NBC Sports' current 10-year contract for American television rights to the NHL. All national coverage of games was aired on either NBCSN, the NBC broadcast network, NHL Network, USA Network, or CNBC. Due to original programming commitments involving CNBC and USA Network, two first round games on April 18 were aired by Golf Channel. During the first round, excluding games exclusively broadcast on NBC, the regional rights holders of each participating U.S. team produced local telecasts of their respective games.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, Television
For the second year, the first round national broadcasts were not blacked out on television in the markets of participating teams, and could co-exist with the local broadcasts (however, NBC-provided coverage was restricted in Pittsburgh and Las Vegas, where AT&T SportsNet holds the regional rights to the Penguins and the Golden Knights respectively).


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, Television
In Canada, for the fourth postseason under Rogers Media's current 12-year contract, coverage was broadcast by Sportsnet and CBC under the Hockey Night in Canada brand, and streamed on Sportsnet Now, CBCSports.ca (for games televised by CBC), or the subscription service Rogers NHL Live. The Winnipeg Jets' first round series against the Minnesota Wild was assigned to Sportsnet, due to the Maple Leafs' series being prioritized to CBC, and to encourage subscription to the network since it is not carried on basic cable in Winnipeg.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, Television
In a surprise move, Sportsnet did not give any on-air assignments to Bob Cole during the playoffs—an exclusion that caught the veteran commentator off-guard. Instead, Sportsnet replaced Cole with Calgary Flames announcer Rick Ball, joining Jim Hughson, Paul Romanuk and Dave Randorf on play-by-play during the first two rounds of the playoffs. It was subsequently announced that Cole would retire from broadcasting the following season.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, Television
Fuelled by viewer interest in the Golden Knights' inaugural season and playoff run, and in Canada, the deep playoff run of the Winnipeg Jets, viewership of these playoffs saw noticeable increases.


2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, Television
NBC reported that viewership of the conference finals collectively saw a 15% increase over 2017, with an average cross-platform viewership of 1.841 million (23% increase year-over-year) for the Western Conference finals featuring the Golden Knights, game one of said series (televised on NBC) seen by 2.374 viewers total, and game seven of the Lightning/Capitals Eastern Conference final pulling a 2.14 overnight rating—the highest viewership for a non-overtime game seven since 2015, and the highest cable viewership of the 2018 playoffs to-date. The Jets also contributed to strong viewership numbers in Canada, with Sportsnet reporting an average of 2.2 million across their second-round series.


2018 Star Nursery 100
The 2018 Star Nursery 100 was a NASCAR K&N Pro Series West race held at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway Dirt Track in Las Vegas, Nevada. The event marked the first K&N Pro Series race on a dirt track since 1979. Sheldon Creed won the race, followed by Bill McAnally Racing's Hailie Deegan and Sunrise Ford Racing's Derek Thorn in second and third respectively.


2018 StarCraft II World Championship Series
The 2018 StarCraft II World Championship Series (WCS) is the 2018 edition of the StarCraft II World Championship Series, the top esports tournament circuit for StarCraft II. Featuring the top eight players from each WCS region, World Championship Series Korea and the World Championship Series Circuit, the Global Finals received greater coverage than most prior events when Finnish professional player Joona "Serral" Sotala became the first non-Korean world champion in the StarCraft series.


2018 StarCraft II World Championship Series, Format
The 2018 StarCraft II World Championship Series was separated into two regions, WCS Circuit and WCS Korea. The former featured four large events with accompanying qualifiers under the WCS Challenger branding, while the latter featured three seasons of the long-running Global StarCraft II League (GSL) Code S with two smaller GSL Super Tournament events interspersed. Two shared World Championship Series Global events featured players from both regions prior to the Global Finals. All these events gave out WCS Circuit and/or WCS Korea points that determined the seeding of the Global Finals.


2018 StarCraft II World Championship Series, Format
Following the introduction of the War Chest for the 2017 Global Finals, two events received War Chest crowdfunding in 2018, with $150,000 and $200,000 added to the prize pools of IEM Katowice and the WCS Global Finals, respectively.


2018 StarCraft II World Championship Series, Format, Seeding
Eight players from each WCS region qualify to the event based on their WCS Points-based rankings. Winners of WCS Circuit stops, GSL Code S events, and IEM Katowice receive automatic qualification. The sixteen players are then seeded into four four-player groups for the first round based on their region-specific ranking. A draw is held for the quarterfinals bracket, with winners of each group facing second-place finishers of other groups.


2018 StarCraft II World Championship Series, Results
For the first time in StarCraft II competition, both regions had all of their large events won by a single person. For WCS Circuit this was Joona "Serral" Sotala, who won all four stops and all related European Challenger events. For WCS Korea this was Cho "Maru" Seong Ju, who won all three GSL Code S seasons. WCS Global event IEM Katowice was won by the previous year's WCS champion, Lee "Rogue" Byung Ryul, with the other WCS Global event, GSL vs. the World, going to Joona "Serral" Sotala, marking the first non-Korean Global StarCraft II League champion.


2018 StarCraft II World Championship Series, Results, Global Finals
The WCS Global Finals were held at the Anaheim Convention Center in Anaheim, California as part of BlizzCon 2018. They featured a group stage as the first round of play, played out the prior week as part of the BlizzCon Opening Week 2018, followed by bracket play from the quarterfinals onward at the convention center itself.


2018 State of Origin series
The 2018 State of Origin series was the 37th annual best-of-three series between the Queensland and New South Wales rugby league teams. Before this series, Queensland had won 21 times, NSW 13 times, with two series drawn. The 2018 series was won by New South Wales, after winning the first 2 games of the series, their first since 2014, and their second since 2005.


2018 State of Origin series
Kevin Walters coached Queensland for the third year in a row, while New South Wales were coached by Brad Fittler after he replaced Laurie Daley in November 2017.


2018 State of the Nation Address (Philippines)
The 2018 State of the Nation Address was the third State of the Nation Address delivered by President Rodrigo Duterte.


2018 State of the Nation Address (Philippines), Preparations
On June 5, 2018, Joyce Bernal who is known for her romance comedy films, was selected to direct the 2018 State of the Nation Address. She was recommended by actor Robin Padilla to President Rodrigo Duterte with the head of state approving the suggestion.


2018 State of the Nation Address (Philippines), Delay and House of Representatives leadership dispute
Gloria Macapagal Arroyo was installed as Speaker of the House of Representatives with 161 members voting for her appointment. Pantaleon Alvarez disputes the appointment and his allies blocked the declaration of the position as vacant. This caused the delay to the lower house's ratification of the Bangsamoro Organic Law.


2018 State of the Nation Address (Philippines), Delay and House of Representatives leadership dispute
The State of the Nation Address was delayed by around 30 minutes.


2018 State of the Nation Address (Philippines), Address content and delivery
Rodrigo Duterte opened his speech vowing to continue pursuing his controversial campaign against illegal drugs saying that he is "for human lives" criticizing human rights activists opposing the campaign.


2018 State of the Nation Address (Philippines), Address content and delivery
He also mentioned the Philippines partnership with Malaysia and Indonesia against piracy in their shared maritime borders as well as the country's cooperation with China against illegal drugs. Duterte added that the cooperation of the country with China doesn't mean the Philippines will stop pursuing its national interest in relation to the South China Sea dispute.


2018 State of the Nation Address (Philippines), Address content and delivery
In relation to the issue of endo contractualization, Duterte reiterates he cannot put a stop to the issue himself having issued Executive Order 51 on May 1, 2018, prohibiting the illegal contracting and sub-contracting of workers. He called for the Congress to pass a legislation putting an end to contractualization.


2018 State of the Nation Address (Philippines), Address content and delivery
The President also urged the implementation of Republic Act 11032 or the Ease of Doing Business and Efficient Government Service Delivery Act of 2018 calling for the deduction of red tape in government agencies.


2018 State of the Nation Address (Philippines), Address content and delivery
Duterte also warned the mining industry regarding destructive mining practices saying it should be "used for the benefit of the Filipino people, not just a select few" and that complying with tax requirements isn't satisfactory compensation since he "can get it from other sources". He also condemned rice cartels for creating an artificial rice shortage and urged the Congress for the passage of a legislation relating to rice importation.


2018 State of the Nation Address (Philippines), Address content and delivery
The Bangsamoro Organic Law, which had its ratification by the House of Representative delayed due to a leadership dispute in the lower house, will be signed within 48 hours as per Duterte's pledge during the speech.


2018 State of the Nation Address (Philippines), Address content and delivery
Duterte ended the speech saying he would not bore the audience with a list of projects by the administration.


2018 State of the Union Address
The 2018 State of the Union Address was given by the 45th president of the United States, Donald Trump, on Tuesday, January 30, 2018, at 9 p.m. EST, in the chamber of the United States House of Representatives to the 115th United States Congress. It was Trump's first State of the Union Address and his second speech to a joint session of the United States Congress. Presiding over this joint session was the House speaker, Paul Ryan, accompanied by Mike Pence, the vice president, in his capacity as the president of the Senate.


2018 State of the Union Address
The Address was watched by 45.6 million viewers. There were also 21 million interactions regarding the address on social media.


2018 State of the Union Address
U.S. Representative Joe Kennedy III and Virginia Delegate Elizabeth Guzmán gave the Democratic Party's response in English and Spanish respectively.


2018 State of the Union Address, Background
Article II, Section 3, Clause 1 of the United States Constitution states that the president "shall from time to time give to the Congress Information of the State of the Union, and recommend to their Consideration such measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient." On November 30, 2017, Speaker of the House Paul Ryan sent an invitation to the President to deliver a "State of the Union address before a joint session of Congress on January 30, 2018, in the House Chamber." The speech was Trump's first State of the Union address and his second speech to a joint session of Congress.


2018 State of the Union Address, Background
On January 26, 2018, a senior administration official told reporters that "the tone [of the address] will be one of bipartisanship and it will be very forward looking." The official said that the theme of Trump's speech would be "building a safe, strong, and proud America." Five major policy issues were discussed by the president: the economy, infrastructure, immigration, trade, and national security. More specifically, Trump touted the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 and echoed his campaign call for "fair" and "reciprocal" trade deals.


2018 State of the Union Address, Background
Senior policy adviser Stephen Miller and staff secretary Rob Porter took the lead in writing the speech. The full draft of the speech was completed two weeks before the State of the Union Address, but it was still being edited with reviews and suggestions from Cabinet secretaries and senior White House aides. National Security Advisor H. R. McMaster, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, and Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis offered feedback on the national security portion of the speech.


2018 State of the Union Address, Contents and delivery, Taxation
A significant portion of the scripted speech was dedicated to the tax package passed in December, which Trump labeled as the largest tax reform bill in U.S. history.


2018 State of the Union Address, Contents and delivery, Economy and employment
The speech also focused on the economic successes of the first year of the presidency. Trump highlighted the creation of new jobs, specifically 200,000 manufacturing jobs. To support this claim, Trump pointed to invited guests from Staub Manufacturing in Dayton, Ohio, a business that has seen their greatest earnings since starting their business 20 years ago. The president also reiterated a 45-year low in unemployment, with the lowest rate of African-American and Hispanic unemployment ever recorded.


2018 State of the Union Address, Contents and delivery, Infrastructure
Trump called on Congress to support a plan to spend $1.5 trillion on rebuilding infrastructure across the country. His speech reflected on the building of the Empire State Building, claiming that it was built in one year while current regulations delay construction of some roads by 10 years. Trump concluded by declaring "we will rebuild infrastructure with American heart, American hands and American grit.”


2018 State of the Union Address, Contents and delivery, Immigration
Much of the State of the Union came in the form of general policy goals. This was especially the case for the issue of immigration. Trump used personal accounts in order to support his pitch for an overhaul in the U.S. immigration system. Two Long Island families, both of whom had children who were killed by a member of the MS-13 gang, a group with ties to Central America, were used to highlight the need to close “glaring loopholes” in the immigration system.


2018 State of the Union Address, Contents and delivery, Immigration
An Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer’s fight with MS-13 was used as an example for greater border security. After listing the perceived dangers of the current immigration system, Trump gave “four pillars” of what he sees as the ideal path forward. He offered a broad framework that includes an eventual pathway to citizenship for “Dreamers” that will take 12 years and increased border security, two tenets of the current budget negotiations between Democrats and the White House.


2018 State of the Union Address, Contents and delivery, Immigration
Trump repeated his desire to move away from the visa-lottery system, and towards a more merit-based system, which will likely prioritize foreigners with a higher-level of education and wealth. The fourth pillar was to end what has become known as chain migration, the practice of prioritizing the family members of immigrants who are already state-side.


2018 State of the Union Address, Contents and delivery, Foreign policy
In a nod to foreign policy and recent provocations against North Korea’s nuclear ambitions, the speech also said that “as part of our defense, we must modernize and rebuild our nuclear arsenal, hopefully never having to use it, but making it so strong and powerful that it will deter any acts of aggression.”


2018 State of the Union Address, Contents and delivery, Foreign policy
Much of the foreign policy portion of the speech criticized North Korea over human rights. Trump introduced both the parents of Otto Warmbier, the American university student who returned to the U.S. in a coma and eventually died following a long detention in North Korea, as well as Ji Seong-ho, an amputee who escaped North Korea as a child after being tortured by authorities.


2018 State of the Union Address, Contents and delivery, Healthcare
In an aim to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, Trump highlighted the GOP's action in repealing the individual mandate as part of their tax overhaul. He also shared that the FDA had approved more drugs in 2017 than in any year prior. Additionally, his speech covered his administration's goal to give veterans choice for their healthcare, as well as allowing patients with terminal illnesses to get access to experimental treatments.


2018 State of the Union Address, Contents and delivery, Healthcare
Trump emphasized that one of his top priorities in 2018 is to reduce the price of prescription drugs, citing that drugs in other countries cost far less than the same drugs in the United States.


2018 State of the Union Address, Address
The State of the Union Address was given at 9 pm EST on January 30, 2018. Distribution of the tickets for the event was delayed because the first printing of the tickets misspelled the event as the "State of the Uniom".


2018 State of the Union Address, Address
John Roberts, the Chief Justice of the United States, and Associate Justices Stephen Breyer, Elena Kagan, and Neil Gorsuch were the only justices of the Supreme Court of the United States in attendance for the speech. The other five justices were absent. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg did not attend the address to participate in a "fireside chat" at Roger Williams University School of Law with U.S. Circuit Judge Bruce M. Selya, which was scheduled in August 2017.


2018 State of the Union Address, Address
U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue was named the designated survivor and was at an undisclosed location during the address so that, in case of a catastrophe, the continuity of government was upheld.


2018 State of the Union Address, Protests
A group of female Democratic members of Congress wore black outfits to the address in solidarity with movements protesting sexual harassment and assault in numerous industries. Members of the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) wore red pins to honor Recy Taylor, a black woman who was gang raped by six white men in 1944.


2018 State of the Union Address, Protests, Democratic boycotts
On January 5, 2018, U.S. Representative Earl Blumenauer announced that he would be in his district rather than attend the State of the Union Address. In light of reporting that Trump called Haiti, El Salvador, and several nations in Africa "shithole countries", Representative John Lewis announced on January 12 that he was not planning on attending the address. Joining Lewis in the boycott, Representative Maxine Waters said, "[Trump] does not deserve my attention." Representative Frederica Wilson became the fourth member of Congress to boycott the address on January 14, calling Trump a racist and liar.


2018 State of the Union Address, Protests, Democratic boycotts
On January 15, Representative Pramila Jayapal announced she too was boycotting the address because of "racism and hatred" from Trump. On January 17, CBC chairman Cedric Richmond said that the group was pondering a potential boycott or demonstration of the address. The press secretary of Representative Barbara Lee said she would not attend the address, which was decided before Trump's disparaging remarks were reported.


2018 State of the Union Address, Protests, Democratic boycotts
On January 26, Representative Jan Schakowsky announced she was not going to attend the address, citing the travel ban, Trump's response to the violence at the Unite the Right rally, and his use of vulgar language to refer to African nations as reasons for her boycott. Representative Gregory Meeks announced on January 28 that he would be boycotting, saying, "I cannot give this man, who does not respect me, the respect to be in that audience." The spokesperson for Representative Albio Sires said, "The congressman is not attending the State of the Union because many of his constituents are offended by the president's rhetoric and behavior." On January 29, Representatives Bobby Rush and Danny Davis announced they were boycotting the address.


2018 State of the Union Address, Protests, Counter-programming, People's State of the Union
Actor Mark Ruffalo, other stars, and members of "the resistance movement" hosted  a "People's State of the Union" on January 29, saying, "In essence, it's a better reflection of our state of the union based on a more populist point of view, based on the people's point of view. I think it's important because we have a president who has a difficult time with the truth, who has a radical, divisive agenda, and spends an enormous amount of time focusing on the negative and hopelessness and despair."


2018 State of the Union Address, Protests, Counter-programming, People's State of the Union
The event was held on January 29, 2018, at The Town Hall in New York City. Attendees included Bill de Blasio, John Leguizamo, Michael Moore, Cynthia Nixon, Rosie Perez, Mark Ruffalo, and Gloria Steinem, and performers included Andra Day, Common, and Rufus Wainwright. "We Stand United" was the lead organizer, and additional support was provided by MoveOn.org Political Action and Stand Up America.


2018 State of the Union Address, Protests, Counter-programming, State of the Dream
On January 25, actress Alyssa Milano announced that she would host counter-programming called "State of the Dream", which would solicit and present brief videos from Americans describing their dreams for the country that would be posted on Twitter and other social media simultaneously while Trump is giving his address.


2018 State of the Union Address, Notable invitations, White House
Along with First Lady Melania Trump, the White House invited certain people affected by the issues that the president will address in his speech. On January 28, 2018, the mother of Kayla Cuevas, who was murdered on Long Island in 2016 by MS-13 gang members, said the White House invited her to attend the State of the Union Address. White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders named several people on January 29 who would attend the address. Among those who were named was a police officer who adopted a baby born to a homeless woman addicted to heroin. Ji Seong-ho, a North Korean defector was invited to the address.


2018 State of the Union Address, Notable invitations, Republican
On January 17, U.S. Representative Sean Duffy invited U.S. Army veteran Ricky Taylor, better known by his Twitter username as "Deplorable Vet", to be his guest at the address after Taylor sought to take Maxine Waters' unused seats. Representative Jim Bridenstine, who was nominated by Trump to be NASA administrator, invited Bill Nye on January 18 to be his guest at the address. On January 24, U.S. Senator John Hoeven announced that Miss America Cara Mund was his guest at the address.


2018 State of the Union Address, Notable invitations, Republican
Representative Kevin Cramer invited Tommy Fisher, a corporate executive whose company was given a contract to develop a prototype for construction of a wall along the U.S. border with Mexico, to attend the address. On January 26, Representative Carlos Curbelo announced he was inviting a recipient of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. Representative Kevin Yoder announced on January 27 that he was inviting the widow of Srinivas Kuchibhotla, an Indian immigrant who was killed in the 2017 Olathe, Kansas shooting.


2018 State of the Union Address, Notable invitations, Democratic
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and several other Democratic members of Congress said they would be inviting DREAMers and other immigrants to the address. Representative Debbie Dingell announced on January 18 that she was inviting Cindy Garcia, whose husband was deported to Mexico after spending nearly three decades living and raising a family in Michigan, to the address. Several House Democrats invited members of the #MeToo and Time's Up movements to attend the address. Representatives Jackie Speier, Bonnie Watson Coleman, and Suzan DelBene respectively invited Fatima Goss Graves, the President and CEO of the National Women's Law Center; the niece of Recy Taylor; and Kristin Rowe-Finkbeiner to be their guests.


2018 State of the Union Address, Notable invitations, Democratic
On January 25, Representative Mark Pocan invited U.S. House candidate Randy Bryce, who is challenging Paul Ryan in the 2018 midterm elections, to the address. Representative Robin Kelly invited Illinois Attorney General candidate Kwame Raoul to attend the address, saying, "As a first-generation Haitian American, his presence and voice at the State of the Union is greatly needed, especially in light of the president's recent racist and derogatory comments about Haiti and other nations." On January 26, Senator Richard Blumenthal invited a survivor of child sex trafficking to the address. On January 27, Representative Val Demings invited a first responder to the Orlando nightclub shooting to the address. Senator Jeanne Shaheen invited to the address a woman whose son died of drug overdose.


2018 State of the Union Address, Notable invitations, Democratic
Senator Kirsten Gillibrand invited San Juan mayor Carmen Yulín Cruz on January 29 to attend the address. On Twitter, Gillibrand wrote, "Throughout the crisis in Puerto Rico, Mayor Cruz has shown extraordinary leadership and fearless advocacy for her city. I hope Mayor Cruz's presence at #SOTU will remind the president and my colleagues in Congress of our urgent responsibility to help Puerto Rico fully recover and rebuild. Our fellow citizens must not be forgotten or left behind."


2018 State of the Union Address, Responses, Democratic Party
On January 25, 2018, it was announced that U.S. Representative Joe Kennedy III would give the Democratic response to the State of the Union Address and the Spanish language response would be given by Virginia Delegate Elizabeth Guzmán, who became the first Hispanic female immigrant elected to the Virginia House of Delegates. Nancy Pelosi said, "Congressman Kennedy profoundly understands the challenges facing hardworking men and women across the country." Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said, "In their responses to the President's address, Congressman Kennedy and Virginia Delegate Guzmán will both do an excellent job in making clear that Democrats are laser-focused on enacting policies to benefit middle class Americans, not special interests or the wealthiest."


2018 State of the Union Address, Responses, Democratic Party
Kennedy said he was honored to be chosen to give the Democratic response, saying, "From health care to economic justice, to civil rights, the Democratic agenda stands in powerful contrast to President Trump's broken promises to American families." In a statement, Guzmán also said she was honored and added, "Through his rhetoric and policies, the president has marginalized members of my community who are simply trying to work hard and support their families. I look forward to standing up for all working people on Tuesday."


2018 State of the Union Address, Responses, Democratic Party
The selection of Kennedy to give the Democratic response came after criticism that the Democratic Party relied too heavily on its oldest leaders since the 2016 presidential election. In choosing Kennedy, the party is trying to bridge the gap with a new face attached to one of the most famous names in American politics. Joe Kennedy III is the second member of his family to give the Democratic response after his great uncle Ted Kennedy gave one to the 1982 State of the Union Address.


2018 State of the Union Address, Responses, Democratic Party
It was announced on January 29 that Kennedy would be giving the Democratic response from Diman Regional Vocational Technical High School in Fall River, Massachusetts.


2018 State of the Union Address, Responses, Libertarian Party
Nicholas Sarwark, the chairman of the Libertarian National Committee, gave the Libertarian Party response to the State of the Union Address. Additionally, Libertarian 2020 presidential candidate Adam Kokesh gave a response to the State of the Union address.


2018 State of the Union Address, Responses, Green Party
On January 25, 2018, the Green Party issued a press release stating that it would stream an online response to the State of the Union Address, featuring Jill Stein and Ajamu Baraka, the 2016 presidential and vice presidential nominees respectively.


2018 State of the Union Address, Responses, Other
It was announced on January 26, 2018, that Maxine Waters would be on the BET program, Angela Rye's State of the Union, after the State of the Union Address to address the country. On January 29, the office of Senator Bernie Sanders, an independent, announced that he would be giving his own response to the address.


2018 State of the Union Address, Coverage
The State of the Union Address was televised on all the major U.S. broadcast and cable television networks. Facebook and Twitter streamed the address online. Nine media outlets (ABC News, CBS News, NBC News, Bloomberg News, The New York Times, The Washington Post, Telemundo, Univision, and C-SPAN) and the White House would provide ten separate livestreams of the address on YouTube.


2018 State of the Union Address, Coverage
On January 24, NBC News announced that it would begin its coverage of the address at 9 pm EST, with NBC Nightly News anchor Lester Holt leading it. Holt was joined by Today co-anchor Savannah Guthrie, Meet the Press moderator Chuck Todd, Megyn Kelly Today anchor Megyn Kelly, special correspondent Tom Brokaw, and chief foreign affairs correspondent Andrea Mitchell. Starting at 8 pm EST, NBC News will also be livestreaming the event on YouTube and NBCNews.com with national political correspondent Steve Kornacki and correspondent Katy Tur.


2018 State of the Union Address, Coverage
On January 26, CBS News announced it was beginning its coverage at 9 pm EST, but CBSN would start streaming its coverage of the event at 5 pm EST. CNN stated that it would start its coverage at 7 pm EST and stream on CNNgo. Fox News announced on January 28 that it would begin coverage at 9 pm EST with Bret Baier and Martha MacCallum.


2018 State of the Union Address, Coverage, Viewership
Across twelve broadcast and cable television networks, 45.8 million viewers watched the speech. The address was the most-tweeted of its kind with a record total of 4.5 million tweets, surpassing the former record of 3 million tweets, set during Trump's 2017 joint session address—which was broken less than an hour into the 2018 address.


2018 State of the Union Address, Reactions, Fact checkers
FactCheck.org stated, "The president exaggerates his accomplishments in his address to Congress." PolitiFact assessed one true, three mostly true, two half true, four mostly false, and two false statements.


2018 State of the Union Address, Reactions, Fact checkers
On February 1, Trump said that viewership of his address was "the highest number in history", but there were five addresses given by Presidents George W. Bush, Bill Clinton, and Barack Obama that had higher viewership.


2018 State of the Union Address, Reactions, Late-night talk shows
Comedy Central's The Daily Show with Trevor Noah and The Opposition with Jordan Klepper were aired live to offer instant analysis and commentary on the State of the Union Address. Both shows planned to simulcast the first segment of their live episodes via Facebook Live. CBS also aired a live edition of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.


2018 State of the Union Address, Reactions, Politicians
Alex Seitz-Wald of NBC News described that during the address, "many Democrats showed how little stock they put in Trump's calls for cooperation by staying seated during rhetoric that would have prompted bipartisan applause if it came from almost any other president." Representative Seth Moulton asked on Twitter if people believed that Trump would follow through on infrastructure. Senator and former 2016 vice presidential nominee Tim Kaine offered advice on what would have convinced Democrats that Trump was serious about cooperation.


2018 State of the Union Address, Reactions, Politicians
In a statement, Representative Adam Schiff said, "Tonight, the president showered law enforcement with praise, even as he and his congressional allies launch an all out attack on the FBI, the pre-eminent federal law enforcement agency." Senators Doug Jones and Joe Manchin were the only Democrats showing consistent support for Trump.


2018 State of the Union Address, Reactions, Public opinion
In a CBS News poll, 42 percent of respondents who watched the State of the Union Address identified themselves as Republicans, 33 percent as Independents, and 25 percent as Democrats. 75 percent of those who were polled approved of the speech. A CNN poll of viewers determined that 48 percent of viewers had a very positive impression of the speech and 22 percent had a somewhat positive impression, which was the lowest net positive rating since CNN first began asking the question in 1998.


2018 Station Square Derailment
The 2018 Station Square Derailment happened in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States, on the afternoon of August 5, 2018. The incident composed of 46 double-stack intermodal containers, and 23 well cars. The train was a Norfolk Southern, carrying Listerine and Pampers, and was traveling at approximately 25  MPH. The cars fell onto the Port Authority of Allegheny County tracks, blocking the line. Nobody was injured, although the accident caused $1.8M in damage. The accident was caught on tape.


2018 Station Square Derailment
An investigation by the Federal Railroad Administration agreed with an initial assessment by Norfolk Southern Railroad that a defect in the rails caused the accident. A rail inspection performed approximately 3 weeks earlier failed to detect the defect. The investigation faulted Norfolk Southern's contractor Sherry Rail Services for failing to detect the defect.


2018 Station Square Derailment, Cleanup and removal
The cleanup and removal started right after the derailment and ended by August 8, when Port Authority had removed all of the 46 containers.


2018 Station Square Derailment, Train
The train involved in the incident was heading from New Jersey to Chicago. It was carrying household items. The train was about 7,500 feet long, and had three locomotives.


2018 Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks football team
The 2018 Stephen F. Austin football team represented Stephen F. Austin State University in the 2018 NCAA Division I FCS football season. The Lumberjacks were led by interim head coach Jeff Byrd and played their home games at Homer Bryce Stadium. They were a member of the Southland Conference. They finished the season 2–8, 2–7 in Southland play to finish in tenth place.


2018 Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks football team
On June 18, head coach Clint Conque was suspended indefinitely pending an investigation into alleged violations of university policy. On August 6, Conque announced his resignation from SFA.


2018 Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks football team, Previous season
The Lumberjacks finished the 2017 season 4–7, 4–5 in Southland play to finish in a tie for sixth place.


2018 Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks football team, Preseason, Preseason All-Conference Teams
On July 12, 2018, the Southland announced their Preseason All-Conference Teams, with the Lumberjacks having five players selected at six positions.


2018 Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks football team, Preseason, Preseason Poll
On July 19, 2018, the Southland announced their preseason poll, with the Lumberjacks predicted to finish in sixth place.


2018 Stetson Hatters football team
The 2018 Stetson Hatters football team represented Stetson University during the 2018 NCAA Division I FCS football season. They were led by sixth-year head coach Roger Hughes and played their home games at Spec Martin Stadium. They were members of the Pioneer Football League. They finished the season 8–2, 6–2 in PFL play to finish in a tie for second place.


2018 Stetson Hatters football team, Previous season
The Hatters finished the 2017 season 2–9, 1–7 in PFL play to finish in tenth place.


2018 Stetson Hatters football team, Preseason, Preseason All-PFL team
The PFL released their preseason all-PFL team on July 30, 2018, with the Hatters having one player selected.


2018 Stetson Hatters football team, Preseason, Preseason coaches poll
The PFL released their preseason coaches poll on July 31, 2018, with the Hatters predicted to finish in ninth place.


2018 Stevenage Borough Council election
Elections to Stevenage Borough Council took place on 3 May 2018. This was on the same day as other local elections across the United Kingdom. One third of the council was up for election; the seats which were last contested in 2014. The Labour Party retained control of the council, which it had held continuously since 1973.


2018 Stock Car Brasil Championship
The 2018 Stock Car Brasil Championship was the fortieth season of the Stock Car Brasil.


2018 Stock Car Brasil Championship, Race calendar and results
The Stock Car Brasil 2018 season schedule, announced on January 18, begins on March 10, on a Saturday, with the return of the Interlagos endurance round with two drivers. There will be a three-month break between the May 20 round in Santa Cruz do Sul-RS and the August 5 "Million Real" round at Goiânia because of the 2018 FIFA World Cup. The 2018 championship will also concluded at Interlagos on December 9. The Stock Light (former Brazilian Tournament Championship, which returns after 10 years) and the Campeonato Brasileiro de Marcas will be the series' support divisions.


2018 Stock Car Brasil Championship, Championship standings
Points are awarded for each race at an event to the driver/s of a car that completed at least 75% of the race distance and was running at the completion of the race.


2018 Stock Car Brasil Championship, Championship standings, Drivers' Championship
Bold – Pole positionItalics – Fastest lap† – Retired, but classified


2018 Stock Car Light season
The 2018 Stock Car Light is the sixteenth season of Stock Car Brasil Light. The 2018 season marks the first season since 2007, after the series endured an eleven-year absence.


2018 Stock Car Light season, Championship standings
Points are awarded for each race at an event to the driver/s of a car that completed at least 75% of the race distance and was running at the completion of the race.


2018 Stock Car Light season, Championship standings, Drivers' Championship
Bold – Pole positionItalics – Fastest lap† – Retired, but classified


2018 Stockholm Open
The 2018 Stockholm Open (also known as the Intrum Stockholm Open for sponsorship purposes) was a professional men's tennis tournament played on indoor hard courts. It was the 50th edition of the tournament, and part of the ATP World Tour 250 series of the 2018 ATP World Tour. It took place at the Kungliga tennishallen in Stockholm, Sweden from 15 to 21 October 2018. Third-seeded Stefanos Tsitsipas won the singles title.


2018 Stockholm Open, Singles main draw entrants, Other entrants
The following players received wildcards into the singles main draw:


2018 Stockholm Open, Doubles main draw entrants, Other entrants
The following pairs received wildcards into the doubles main draw:


2018 Stockholm Open – Doubles
Oliver Marach and Mate Pavić were the defending champions, but chose not to defend their title.


2018 Stockholm Open – Doubles
Luke Bambridge and Jonny O'Mara won the title, defeating Marcus Daniell and Wesley Koolhof in the final, 7–5, 7–6(10–8).


2018 Stockholm Open – Singles
Juan Martín del Potro was the two-time  defending champion but chose not to defend his title.


2018 Stockholm Open – Singles
Stefanos Tsitsipas won his first ATP World Tour title, defeating Ernests Gulbis in the final, 6–4, 6–4. With the win, he became the first Greek player to win an ATP title. Gulbis lost his first ATP Tour final, after six singles titles in a row.


2018 Stockholm Open – Singles, Seeds
The top four seeds receive a bye into the second round.


2018 Stockholm regional election
Stockholm County or Region Stockholm held a regional council election on 9 September 2018 on the same day as the general and municipal elections.


2018 Stockholm regional election, Results
There were 149 seats, the same number as in 2014. The Social Democrats supplanted the Moderates as the largest party. However, after protracted negotiations, a majority Blue-Green government was formed between the Alliance parties and the Green Party. Previously, the Alliance parties had a majority since the 2014 regional elections, but losses to the Sweden Democrats necessitated the formation of a cross-bloc coalition with the Greens to gather a governing majority, as the Alliance parties wished to avoid relying on the Sweden Democrats.


2018 Stockholm regional election, Municipal & Stockholm ward results
Stockholm Municipality was divided into six separate electoral wards (Södermalm-Enskede, Bromma-Kungsholmen, Norrmalm-Östermalm-Gamla Stan, Östra Söderort, Västra Söderort and Yttre Västerort) and its results were not counted as a unit. These wards have in these lists been translated to English to shorten columns.


2018 Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council election
The 2018 Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council election took place on 3 May 2018 to elect members of Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council in England. This was on the same day as other local elections. Stockport Council is elected in thirds, which means that in each three member local ward, one councillor is elected every year, except every four years which is classed as a fallow year. The last fallow year was 2017, when no local government elections took place in the borough. Those councillors elected in 2018 will serve a four-year term, expiring in 2022. The election in Edgeley & Cheadle Heath was deferred, owing to the death of the Conservative candidate, until 24 May 2018.


2018 Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council election
After the election, the Labour minority administration that had governed since 2016 was able to continue in office, although without a majority the administrations budget was voted down in March 2019, the first time this had happened since the 1980s.


2018 Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council election, Election results by ward
Asterix indicates incumbent in the Ward, and Bold names highlight winning candidate.


2018 Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council election, Deferred election, Edgeley and Cheadle Heath
On 17 April 2018, Stockport Council published a notice to confirm that due to the death of the Conservative candidate Maureen Baldwin-Moore the scheduled election for this ward would no longer take place on 3 May 2018, and that a new poll would take place on 24 May 2018. Under the Electoral Administration Act, the Conservatives were allowed to select a replacement candidate, but new nominations by other parties were not permitted.


2018 Stockton Challenger
The 2018 Stockton Challenger was a professional tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts. It was the third and fourth editions of the tournament and was part of the 2018 ATP Challenger Tour and the 2018 ITF Women's Circuit. It took place in Stockton, United States, on 1–7 October 2018.


2018 Stockton Challenger, Men's singles main draw entrants, Other entrants
The following players received wildcards into the singles main draw:


2018 Stockton Challenger, Men's singles main draw entrants, Other entrants
The following player received entry into the singles main draw as a special exempt:


2018 Stockton Challenger, Men's singles main draw entrants, Other entrants
The following player received entry into the singles main draw as an alternate:


2018 Stockton Challenger, Women's singles main draw entrants, Other entrants
The following players received a wildcard into the singles main draw:


2018 Stockton Challenger, Women's singles main draw entrants, Other entrants
The following players received entry into the singles main draw using a junior exempt:


2018 Stockton Challenger – Men's Doubles
Brydan Klein and Joe Salisbury were the defending champions but chose not to defend their title.


2018 Stockton Challenger – Men's Doubles
Darian King and Noah Rubin won the title after defeating Sanchai Ratiwatana and Christopher Rungkat 6–3, 6–4 in the final.


2018 Stockton Challenger – Men's Singles
Cameron Norrie was the defending champion but chose not to defend his title.


2018 Stockton Challenger – Men's Singles
Lloyd Harris won the title after defeating Marc Polmans 6–2, 6–2 in the final.


2018 Stockton Challenger – Women's Doubles
Usue Maitane Arconada and Sofia Kenin were the defending champions, but chose not to participate this year.


2018 Stockton Challenger – Women's Doubles
Hayley Carter and Ena Shibahara won the title, defeating Quinn Gleason and Luisa Stefani in the final, 7–5, 5–7, [10–7].


2018 Stockton Challenger – Women's Singles
Sofia Kenin was the defending champion, but chose not to participate.


2018 Stockton Challenger – Women's Singles
Madison Brengle won the title, defeating Danielle Lao in an all-American final, 7–5, 7–6(12–10).


2018 Stony Brook Seawolves football team
The 2018 Stony Brook Seawolves football team represented Stony Brook University in the 2018 NCAA Division I FCS football season. The Seawolves competed as sixth-year members of the Colonial Athletic Association with Chuck Priore as the head coach for his 13th season. They played their home games at Kenneth P. LaValle Stadium in Stony Brook, New York. They finished the season 7–5, 5–3 in CAA play to finish in a three-way tie for third place. They received an at-large berth to the FCS Playoffs, where they lost in the first round to Southeast Missouri State.


2018 Stony Brook Seawolves football team, Previous season
The Seawolves finished the 2017 season 10–3, 7–1 in CAA play to finish in second place despite being predicted to finish in 8th. They received an at-large bid to the FCS Playoffs where they defeated Lehigh in the first round before losing to James Madison in the second round. It was their most successful season since joining the CAA in 2013.


2018 Stony Brook Seawolves football team, Preseason, CAA Poll
In the CAA preseason poll released on July 24, 2018, the Seawolves were predicted to finish in fourth place.


2018 Stony Brook Seawolves football team, Preseason, Preseason All-CAA Team
The Seawolves had two players selected to the preseason all-CAA team.


2018 Stony Brook Seawolves football team, Game Summaries, at Air Force
In the season opener, the Seawolves were held to 75 yards of total offense as they were shut out in a road loss to FBS opponents Air Force. The Falcons gained 362 yards in comparison.


2018 Stony Brook Seawolves football team, Game Summaries, Bryant
In the team's home opener, the Seawolves jumped out to a quick 20–0 lead. However, Bryant scored three straight touchdowns to take a 21–20 lead, helped by turnovers from the Stony Brook offense. In the end, the "Long Island Express", the nickname for the senior running back duo of Jordan Gowins and Donald Liotine, managed to wear the Bulldogs defense down. Liotine gained 107 yards and Gowins gained 146 yards. The game ended on a 95-yard pick six from Stony Brook defensive back Damarcus Miller.


2018 Stony Brook Seawolves football team, Game Summaries, at Fordham
The Seawolves traveled to nearby Bronx to play their final non-conference game of the season. Both members of the Long Island Express gained over 100 yards again, as Gowins gained 160 yards with a touchdown and Liotine gained 106 yards with a touchdown. Stony Brook's third defensive touchdown of the year came when defensive lineman Jordan Scarbrough returned a pick six 25 yards in the first quarter. Fordham was shut out until 2:14 in the fourth quarter.


2018 Stony Brook Seawolves football team, Game Summaries, Richmond
In the CAA opener, Richmond took a 3–0 lead and threatened to score more, but Stony Brook defensive back Gavin Heslop returned a Richmond fumble 87 yards for a touchdown. The work of the Long Island Express helped expand the lead, as Jordan Gowins had 192 yards with two touchdowns and Donald Liotine gained 133 yards. Stony Brook ended the game by scoring 20 consecutive points.


2018 Stony Brook Seawolves football team, Game Summaries, Villanova
Stony Brook fell behind early to Villanova, trailing 21–0 in the second quarter. A touchdown pass from quarterback Joe Carbone to wide receiver Julius Wingate scored the Seawolves' first points with 1:51 left in the half. The second half kickoff was fumbled by Villanova and recovered by Stony Brook, and Donald Liotine scored a touchdown to reduce the lead to 21–13. Carbone threw a second touchdown pass to Wingate, and a successful two-point conversion tied the game at 21.


2018 Stony Brook Seawolves football team, Game Summaries, Villanova
Villanova quarterback Zach Bednarczyk was called for intentional grounding in the end zone, leading to a safety that caused the Seawolves to lead 23–21. Carbone's third touchdown of the day, this time to Cal Daniels, extended the lead to 29–21 after a missed extra point. With :56 left, Villanova scored another touchdown to bring the lead to 29–27, but the Seawolves victory was ensured as the two-point conversion was batted down and the onside kick failed.


2018 Stony Brook Seawolves football team, Game Summaries, at Towson
Stony Brook's four-game winning streak came to an end in Maryland, as the Towson Tigers, led by quarterback Tom Flacco (brother of Joe Flacco) jumped out to a 21–0 lead, kickstarted by running back Shane Simpson's opening kickoff return for a touchdown. The Seawolves defense forced two Towson turnovers, scoring on both successive drives to whittle their lead down to 21–14. However, Flacco threw two more touchdowns before halftime to bring the lead back to 35–14. Donald Liotine fumbled the second half kickoff, and Towson would continue to add to their lead as Stony Brook pulled their starters and were upset on the road.


2018 Stony Brook Seawolves football team, Game Summaries, at New Hampshire
Reeling from last week's upset loss at Towson, Stony Brook traveled up to New Hampshire with one half of the Long Island Express, Jordan Gowins, out with an injury. Donald Liotine carried the load himself, collecting 163 yards on 32 carries. The Seawolves returned both an interception and a fumble for touchdowns, helping extend their lead to 21–0 in the second quarter. Backup running back Kameron Pickett scored his first career touchdown in the fourth quarter, sealing the 35–7 victory.


2018 Stony Brook Seawolves football team, Game Summaries, Rhode Island
On Stony Brook's Homecoming night, the Seawolves improved to 6–2 as they blew out No. 22 ranked Rhode Island. The Long Island Express returned to full force, with both Gowins and Liotine rushing for over 100 yards for the fourth time this season, tying a school record. Stony Brook gained 460 yards of total offense and scored five total rushing touchdowns. With 12,701 in attendance, this was the most watched home game in Stony Brook football history.


2018 Stony Brook Seawolves football team, Game Summaries, at James Madison
Stony Brook traveled on the road to Harrisonburg, Virginia to face James Madison as three-touchdown underdogs. An early drive was ended in JMU territory as Joe Carbone was intercepted, and the Dukes took a 7–0 lead late in the first quarter. Donald Liotine tied the game with a 30-yard touchdown in the second quarterback, and a JMU fumble led to a Stony Brook field goal right before halftime as the Seawolves took a 10–7 lead and looked to upset the No. 3 ranked Dukes.


2018 Stony Brook Seawolves football team, Game Summaries, at James Madison
The Seawolves drove deep into JMU territory in the third quarter, but Carbone was picked off again as Stony Brook threatened to extend their lead. Two fourth-quarter field goals by Dukes kicker Tyler Gray helped them take a 13–10 lead. Stony Brook got the ball back for one final drive, where Joe Carbone completed two passes on fourth down, including an acrobatic catch by Julius Wingate and a reception that would have went for a touchdown had Wingate not tripped and fell. With three seconds left, the Seawolves tried a 51-yard field goal, but kicker Alex Lucansky's attempt ended up short and Stony Brook's upset bid ended in defeat.


2018 Stony Brook Seawolves football team, Game Summaries, Delaware
The Seawolves took on first-place Delaware on a cold, windy day in New York. Early promising Stony Brook drives stalled due to an interception and a botched snap, but Delaware could not capitalize on Stony Brook's mistakes, as kicker Frank Raggo missed two field goals and botched the snap of a third. Stony Brook kicked a field goal as time expired in the first half and scored a touchdown on 4th and 8 as Donavin Washington caught a Joe Carbone pass in the third quarter. The Seawolves extended their lead as a 33-yard run touchdown by Donald Liotine made it 17–3 with 5:27 left in the fourth quarter. Outgaining Delaware 400–201, Stony Brook's tough defense prevented the Blue Hens from ever making a serious comeback attempt.


2018 Stony Brook Seawolves football team, Game Summaries, at Albany
In the final game of the regular season, Stony Brook traveled up to Albany to face a Great Danes team that was winless in CAA play for the Empire Clash. The Seawolves were down early despite being 18.5 point favorites, but entered halftime tied 10–10 after a Jordan Gowins touchdown run. Carbone ran it in himself to extend the Stony Brook lead to 17–10. However, with five minutes left to play, Albany quarterback Jeff Undercuffler threw an 81-yard touchdown pass to Donavan McDonald; a missed PAT whittled the lead to 17–16.


2018 Stony Brook Seawolves football team, Game Summaries, at Albany
Albany got the ball back and took back the lead with 1:45 remaining on a Karl Mofor 16-yard touchdown run; a failed two-point conversion meant the lead was only 22–16. On the ensuing kickoff, Donald Liotine fumbled the ball and Albany recovered, but Stony Brook used all three timeouts and Albany's Ethan Stark missed a field goal. With 17 seconds remaining, Carbone threw a Hail Mary pass that was caught by Julius Wingate for a touchdown, and the Seawolves took a 23–22 lead. However, an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty during the celebration pushed Stony Brook's kickoff back 15 yards. The ensuing squib kick was returned to the Stony Brook 42-yard line, and one pass play brought Albany to the 31. As time expired, Stark's 48-yard field goal bounced off the crossbar and in as Albany pulled off a stunning upset in the rivalry game.


2018 Stormers season
In 2018, the  Stormers participated in the 2018 Super Rugby competition, the 23rd edition of the competition since its inception in 1996. They were included in the South African Conference of the competition, along with the  Bulls,  Jaguares,  Lions and  Sharks.


2018 Stormers season
The Stormers won six and lost ten of their matches during the regular season of the competition to finish fourth in the South African Conference, and in 11th place overall.


2018 Stormers season, Personnel, Coaches and management
The Stormers coaching and management staff for the 2018 Super Rugby season were:


2018 Stormers season, Personnel, Squad
The following players were named in the Stormers squad for the 2018 Super Rugby season:


2018 Stormers season, Standings
The final standings for the 2018 Super Rugby season were:


2018 Stormers season, Standings, Round-by-round
The table below shows the Stormers' progression throughout the season. For each round, their cumulative points total is shown with the overall log position:


2018 Stormers season, Matches
The Stormers played the following matches during the 2018 Super Rugby season:


2018 Stormers season, Player statistics
The Super Rugby appearance record for players that represented the Stormers in 2018 is as follows:


2018 Stormers season, Player statistics
(c) denotes the team captain. For each match, the player's squad number is shown. Starting players are numbered 1 to 15, while the replacements are numbered 16 to 23. If a replacement made an appearance in the match, it is indicated by . "App" refers to the number of appearances made by the player, "Try" to the number of tries scored by the player, "Con" to the number of conversions kicked, "Pen" to the number of penalties kicked, "DG" to the number of drop goals kicked and "Pts" refer to the total number of points scored by the player.


2018 Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry United Counties municipal elections
Elections were held in Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry United Counties, Ontario on October 22, 2018 in conjunction with municipal elections across the province.


2018 Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry United Counties municipal elections, Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry United Counties Council
Council consists of the mayors and deputy mayors of each of the townships. It does not include the city of Cornwall.


2018 Strade Bianche
The 2018 Strade Bianche was a road cycling one-day race that took place on 3 March 2018 in Italy. It was the twelfth edition of the Strade Bianche and the fifth event of the 2018 UCI World Tour.


2018 Strade Bianche
Tiesj Benoot (Lotto–Soudal) took his first professional victory, after attacking from a chasing group to catch leaders Romain Bardet (AG2R La Mondiale) and Wout van Aert (Vérandas Willems–Crelan) before dropping them in the final sector of dirt roads. Benoot soloed to victory by 39 seconds ahead of Bardet, who dropped van Aert in the final kilometre; van Aert, a three-time world elite cyclo-cross champion, ultimately completed the podium a further 19 seconds in arrears.


2018 Strade Bianche, Teams
As the race was only added to the UCI World Tour calendar in 2017, all UCI WorldTeams were invited to the race, but not obligated to compete in the race. As it transpired, all eighteen WorldTeams elected to compete in the race, just like in 2017. Three UCI Professional Continental teams competed, completing the 21-team peloton.


2018 Strade Bianche, Teams
Strade Bianche is the final race for FDJ under that nomenclature; from Paris–Nice the following day, the team becomes known as Groupama–FDJ.


2018 Strade Bianche Women
The fourth edition of the Women's Strade Bianche was held on 3 March 2018. It was the first leg of the 2018 UCI Women's World Tour. The race was run in abysmal weather and was won by Dutch rider Anna van der Breggen of the Boels–Dolmans team, after an attack on the penultimate gravel sector of Colle Pinzuto at 17 km from the finish.


2018 Strade Bianche Women, Teams
Twenty-four teams entered the race. Each team had a maximum of six riders:


2018 Strasbourg attack
On the evening of 11 December 2018, a terrorist attack occurred in Strasbourg, France, when a man attacked civilians in the city's busy Christkindelsmärik (Christmas market) with a revolver and a knife, killing five and wounding 11 before fleeing in a taxi. Authorities called the shooting an act of terrorism.


2018 Strasbourg attack
The attacker was 29-year-old Chérif Chekatt, who had multiple criminal convictions and was on a security services watchlist as a suspected Islamist extremist. Chekatt was killed in a shootout with French police on the evening of 13 December after a manhunt involving 700 officers. He had pledged allegiance to the terrorist organisation Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) judicial sources said.