The 98th Oscar nominations are out. If you are like many of us, you haven’t seen all of the films — yet, any way.
Not to worry. The Oscars don’t air until March 15, so you have plenty of time to catch up. And with this week’s forecast of more than a foot of snow, why not stay home and get started early.
Here’s how and where you can check out some of the Oscar nominated films of 2025.
Best Picture
Michelle (Emma Stone) gets interrogated by cousins Teddy (Jesse Plemons, far right) and Don (Aidan Delbis) in “Bugonia.”
‘Bugonia’
This dark comedy stars Emma Stone as Michelle Fuller, the CEO of the fictional pharmaceutical conglomerate Auxolith. She’s abducted by conspiracy theorist Teddy Gatz (Jesse Plemons) and his cousin, Don (Aidan Delbis) after Teddy starts to believe an Auxolith drug has caused his mother’s comatose state. Adding to the creepiness, Teddy also believes Michelle is an alien. Bugonia received four nominations, including a best actress nod for Stone.
Damson Idris, left, and Brad Pitt star in “F1.” MUST CREDIT: Warner Bros. Pictures/Apple Original Films
‘F1′
Brad Pitt stars in this fast-paced drama about a star Formula One driver who returns to the game after being gone for 30 years. His mission: to help his friend’s underdog team take it all. F1 received four Academy Award nods.
This image released by Netflix shows director Guillermo del Toro, left, and Oscar Isaac on the set of “Frankenstein.” (Ken Woroner/Netflix via AP)
‘Frankenstein’
A cinematic adaptation of the 1818 Mary Shelley classic features Oscar Isaac as Victor Frankenstein and Jacob Elordi as his ghoulish creation. This 2025 film is director Guillermo del Toro’s attempt to be as faithful to the book as he possibly can. Frankenstein earned nine nominations.
This image released by Focus Features shows Jessie Buckley in a scene from “Hamnet.” (Agata Grzybowska/Focus Features via AP)
‘Hamnet’
William Shakespeare (Jesse Buckley) and his wife, Agnes, (Anne Hathaway) mourn the death of their son in this film based on Maggie O’Ferrel’s 2020 eponymous historical fiction novel. Hamnet received eight nominations.
Playing: Film Society Bourse, Landmark’s Ritz Five, Reel Cinemas Narbeth, Bryn Mawr Film Institute, AMC Cherry Hill 24.
This image released by A24 shows Timothée Chalamet in a scene from “Marty Supreme.” (A24 via AP)
‘Marty Supreme’
Timothée Chalamet is Marty, an ambitious table tennis hustler in 1950s New York whose story is inspired by the real life scammer Marty Reisman. The anxious sports drama follows Marty’s quest for table tennis glory that takes him to Japan. The movie picked up nine nominations including a best actor nod for Chalamet.
Playing: AMC Broad Street 7, Cinemark University City Penn 6, AMC Dine-in Fashion District 8, Film Society Bourse, Film Society East, Landmark Ritz 5, AMC Deptford 8, Bryn Mawr Film Institute, Cinemark Somerdale 16 and XD, AMC Marple 10, Regal Moorestown Mall, AMC Voorhees 16, Regal Plymouth Meeting, AMC Marlton 8
This image released by Warner Bros. Pictures shows Leonardo DiCaprio in a scene from “One Battle After Another.” (Warner Bros. Pictures via AP)
‘One Battle After Another’
In this dense, action-packed thriller by Paul Thomas Anderson, a has-been revolutionary (Leonardo DiCaprio) has to find his missing daughter whose disappearance is connected to his past association with a radical group. This film has 13 Oscar nominations.
Playing: Landmark’s Ritz Five, AMC Cherry Hill 24, Hiway Theater in Jenkintown, Regal UA King Of Prussia, Regal Cross Keys, AMC Neshaminy 24, Regal Brandywine Town Center, Regal UA Oxford Valley, Regal Cumberland Mall, Regal Peoples Plaza, and more.
A person buys a ticket for the Oscar-nominated film, The Secret Agent, at a self-service ticket kiosk, at a movie theater in Sao Paulo, Thursday, Jan. 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Andre Penner)
‘The Secret Agent’
A historical nonfiction follows former professor and political dissident Armando (best actor Oscar nominee Wagner Moura) is on the run from mercenary killers in this 1977 Brazilian thriller from Cannes-winning filmmaker Kleber Mendonça Filho.
Playing: Film Society Bourse, Bryn Mawr Film Institute, the Colonial Theatre, County Theater in Doylestown, the Princeton Garden Theatre, Montgomery Cinemas in Skillman, NJ, and more.
This image released by CBS Broadcasting shows Stellan Skarsgård accepting the award for best performance by a supporting actor in a motion picture for “Sentimental Value,” from presenter Kevin Bacon, left, during the 83rd Golden Globes on Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, at the Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, Calif. (Kevork Djansezian/CBS Broadcasting via AP)
‘Sentimental Value’
Sisters Nora (Renate Reinsve playing a theater actor) and Agnes (Inga Ibsdotter Lileaas) reunite with their distant father Gustav (Stellan Skarsgard), a famous director. The reunion forces the family to confront past trauma and their shared artistic practice as Gustav works on a film based on his family members.
This image released by Warner Bros Pictures shows Michael B. Jordan, center, in a scene from “Sinners.” (Warner Bros. Pictures via AP)
‘Sinners’
Rich from Chicago bootlegging schemes, twins Smoke and Stack (Michael B. Jordan) return to their home in the Deep South during the 1930s to open a juke joint. Here they come fact-to-face with vampires intent on stealing their souls. The film, directed by Ryan Coogler, received a record-breaking 16 nominations including one for Jordan, who is nominated for best actor.
Playing: Landmark’s Ritz Five, AMC Cherry Hill 24, Cinemark Somerdale 16 and XD, Regal UA King Of Prussia, AMC Neshaminy 24, Regal Warrington Crossing, CAMC Center Valley 16, and more.
Joel Edgerton navigates personal tragedy and decades of working on the railroad in the period drama “Train Dreams.”
‘Train Dreams’
Early 20th century logger Robert Grainer (Joel Edgerton) builds a life with his wife Gladys (Felicity Jones) only to lose it all to wildfires, violence, and changing times. The film is based on Denis Johnson’s novella and received four Oscar nominations.
Vahid Mobasseri plays a mechanic and former Iranian political prisoner who kidnaps his former torturer in the genre-mashing thriller “It Was Just an Accident.”
‘It Was Just an Accident’
This Iranian thriller from legendary filmmaker Jafar Panahi follows a mechanic named Vahid (Vahid Mobasseri) who, along with fellow rebels, encounters their former prison tormentor and vows revenge.
This image released by Neon shows, from left, Stefania Gadda, Joshua Liam Herderson, Richard Bellamy and Sergi López in a scene from the film “Sirat.” (Neon via AP)
‘Sirāt’
A film in French, Arabic, English, and Spanish about a family searching for their missing daughter during a music rave in a southern Moroccan desert. Add to that an armed conflict that escalates into a World War III-like tussle.
Motaz Malhees stars in “The Voice of Hind Rajab” as a Palestinian Red Crescent Society worker who receives a distress call from 6-year-old Hind Rajab, seen in the photograph. MUST CREDIT: WILLA
‘The Voice of Hind Rajab’
Tunisian filmmaker Kaouther Ben Hania’s docudrama chronicles the killing of Hind Rajab, a 5-year-old Palestinian girl in Gaza using an emergency call Red Crescent volunteers received on January 29, 2024.
We’ll show you a photo taken in the Philly-area, you drop a pin where you think it was taken. Closer to the location results in a better score. This week’s theme is all about snow! Good luck!
Round #17
Question 1
Where is this person waiting for the bus?
Loading…
ClickTap on map to guess the location in the photo
ClickTap again to change your guess and hit submit when you're happy
You will be scored at the end. The closer to the location the better the score
Heather Khalifa / Staff Photographer
Pretty good/Not bad/Way off! Your guess was from the location.Spot on! Your guess was exactly at the location. Here's also where a random selection of Inquirer readers guessed.
Pretty good/Not bad/Way off! Your guess was from the location.Spot on! Your guess was exactly at the location. Here's also where a random selection of Inquirer readers guessed.
This is the Independence Hall hole at the Philly Mini Golf course in Franklin Square Park. Until February 16, the entire course will be Winter themed with lights, seasonal music, and occasional inflatable snowman.
Quiz continues after ad
Question 3
Where are these folks shoveling?
Loading…
Tyger Williams / Staff Photographer
Pretty good/Not bad/Way off! Your guess was from the location.Spot on! Your guess was exactly at the location. Here's also where a random selection of Inquirer readers guessed.
Service workers at the Philadelphia Zoo are shoveling snow on a parking lot near the new “Pherris Wheel.” This new observation wheel that will remain through America’s 250th anniversary celebrations.
Your Score
ARank
Amazing work. A Winter wonderland of knowledge.
BRank
Good stuff. You’re a real snowman.
CRank
C is a passing grade, but you nearly slipped.
DRank
D isn’t great. That was an avalanche of bad answers.
FRank
We don’t want to say you failed, but you didn’t not fail.
You beat % of other Inquirer readers.
We’ll be back next Saturday for another round of Citywide Quest.
The buyers: Carrita Thomas, 33, nonprofit program evaluator; Jake Stein, 42, CEO of a tech start-up
The house: A 6,775-square-foot church in Society Hill built in 1920
The price: Listed for $2.5 million, purchased for $2.5 million
The agent: Kate McCann, Elfant Wissahickon Realtors
Carrita Thomas and Jake Stein on the main floor of their newly purchased church in Society Hill.
The ask: Carrita Thomas and Jake Stein moved to Society Hill in 2021 and immediately fell in love. They grew even more attached after having their first child. They loved the abundance of playgrounds and parking. But most of all, they appreciated how the area functioned as a village. “We have a great community of friends,” Thomas said. “We are very close with our neighbors.”
But when they found out that Thomas was pregnant with twins, their rowhouse, which once felt generous, suddenly seemed cramped. They needed more space fast but didn’t want to leave the neighborhood. They also wanted on-site parking and outdoor space for Thomas to garden. Plus they needed at least six bedrooms. The couple knew they were in for a difficult search.
One of the church’s courtyards with plant beds where Thomas and her daughter recently planted bulbs with friends.
The search: The market moved fast for houses that met their criteria. More than once, they scheduled showings for houses already under contract. Once, they scheduled a showing three days after a house came on the market, only to have the agent cancel because it had already sold. After several misses, they decided to reassess their options, including renovation. “We had not been interested in it before because we’d only heard negative stories,” Thomas said.
Around the same time, Stein noticed a sale sign on a vacant church two blocks from theirhome. It had been unused for decades, its landscaping overgrown, its windows dark. “I always thought it was so cool and interesting,” Stein said. “And what a waste.”
That discovery shifted their search. Instead of continuing to hunt for the impossible-to-find, perfect rowhouse, the couple began to consider the most glaring fixer-upper in the neighborhood.
The couple fell in love with the church’s raw materials, like the stained glass windows lining its walls.
The appeal: Thomas was initiallyskeptical. Every church conversion she had seen leaned toward a loft-style layout, and she didn’t want to live in an open, cavernous space. But walking through the property with an architect helped her picture more-private floor plans.
One of the church’s main selling points was its driveway and ample parking space.
Inside, the building was structurally sound and full of “high-quality raw material,” said Thomas. But what really sold them was the “insane amount of outdoor space.”
To get a sense of renovation costs and trade-offs, the couple also consulted with someone who had previously run a design-build construction company. That process replaced vague anxiety about expenses with concrete ranges. “There are really expensive versions of renovations,” Stein said, “and there are much more reasonable versions.”
Understanding that they could “choose their own adventure” and “dial up or dial down the budget based on their design decisions” made the renovation seem actually doable, if not meaningful.
Thomas appreciated that the church had once been a place where people gathered. “One of our primary values is community,” she said. And the idea of restoring that function — even in a different form — felt really special to the couple. “It just adds so much richness to our lives,” she said.
One of Stein’s favorite features of the church is the basement and the giant warped Ping-Pong table, on which he’s played multiple games.
The deal: Thomas and Steinknew that the terms would be largely out of their control. The seller, who lived out of state, had owned the building for decades and was not inclined to negotiate. She had rejected several offers over the years and did not advertise her property as being for sale online. Even getting the asking price took effort. Their agent had to follow up multiple times. The seller eventually told them it was $2.5 million. She had recently rejected an offer below the asking price without counteroffering, so the couple didn’t bother negotiating. “We know we would only get it if we met all of her terms,” Thomas said. They submitted a straightforward offer, including skipping the inspection, at the asking price, and the seller accepted.
Interior views of the newly purchased church owned by Carrita Thomas and Jake Stein.
The money: Thomas and Stein put $2.5 million down in cash — the full cost of the property — the day they closed. They did not take out a mortgage. The funds came from the sale of Stein’s former software company, which he sold in 2018 for $60 million. Their renovation budget is still fluctuating.
The move: Thomas and Stein closed on the church at the end of September.
A view of the staircase in the rectory that is attached to the church.
They spent the past few months figuring out how to approach the renovation, talking with people who had done similar projects, and meeting with contractors. “It’s a slow process,” Thomas said, “but it’s a really important part of it.” Now, they are finalizing contracts with vendors. She expects the entire project to take about two years. Construction is still a ways away.
They are living in their Society Hill rowhouse for now, and it no longer feels too small. “We’re pretty comfortable,” Thomas said. “Something changed for me after I had the twins. I think both of our tolerance for chaos just went up a lot.”
Any reservations? The couple is happy with their purchase, even though there are still many unknowns. “A lot of careful planning needs to go into this,” Thomas said. “There are a lot of open questions still,” Stein added. They will have to knock down a few walls to figure out what is even possible. It will take at least 10 months to finalize the design. The couple is up for it. “It’s a cool project,” Thomas said.
Life after close: Even though the renovation hasn’t started, the building is already functioning as part of the neighborhood again. The couple hosted a Halloween party for their neighbors, and a few weeks later Thomas had her daughter’s friends over to plant bulbs.
If you can believe the ambitious claims in a slickly produced video released Jan. 4ahead of the CES technology show in Las Vegas, a battery revolution is coming this year that could upend the EV market and eventually usher in a new era of fast-charging, long-range cars and trucks.
The high-end electric motorcycle maker Verge Motorcycles and its spin-off motor company Donut Lab say they’re selling the world’s first EV powered by a “solid-state” battery — a much-hyped, long-promised type of battery that packs more power than standard cells, if companies could figure out how to design and mass-produce it.
But Verge and Donut Lab have offered no evidence and few details about their battery claims. The proof, they say, will come when customers start to receive the $30,000 electric motorcycles they are selling now and plan to deliver by the end of March. Scientists are skeptical, and the controversy illustrates the long and troubled history of companies that have tried — and so far failed — to develop a technology sometimes lauded as the holy grail of batteries.
Solid-state batteries are similar to the standard lithium-ion batteries found in phones, laptops, and electric cars, but they replace liquid electrolytes with solid materials that, theoretically, could allow them to store more energy, charge faster, and last longer, while lowering their fire risk. Researchers have struggled to develop solid-state batteries that combine all these benefits and work consistently in the real world. Even if they succeeded, companies would have to spend years and billions of dollars overhauling battery factories to mass-produce solid cells instead of batteries that use liquid electrolytes.
Global car companies including Toyota, Nissan, and Hyundai have promised to release long-range EVs with solid-state batteries for years — but they’ve pushed back their release dates so many times that it has become a joke in the auto industry. Battery giants including Samsung, Panasonic, and CATL, and well-funded solid-state start-ups such as QuantumScape and Solid Power, are also working on the technology, targeting mass production in the next few years and churning out a steady stream of patents and peer-reviewed papers.
Donut Lab, a Finnish start-up with fewer than 100 employees that announced its existence 14 months ago, says it has beaten its rivals with an “all-solid-state battery” that CEO Marko Lehtimäki says makes no trade-offs whatsoever: It stores about twice as much energy per pound as a typical EV battery, charges from zero to 100% in five minutes, can last 100,000 charge cycles, loses almost no capacity in the bitter cold of minus 22 degrees or the boiling heat of 212 degrees, uses no rare or “geopolitically constrained” materials, and is cheaper than standard lithium-ion cells.
The start-up has raised nearly $60 million from investors like Risto Siilasmaa, the former chairman of Finnish cell phone giant Nokia, who now sits on Donut Lab’s board of directors.
“Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence,” said Paul Braun, a professor and director of the Materials Research Laboratory at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. “While no laws of physics appear to be broken, I need to see a lot more data before I am convinced the battery technology is real.”
Kelsey Hatzell, an associate professor at Princeton University who heads a materials science lab that works on solid-state batteries, said the no-downside combination of properties Donut Lab has promised “sounds impossible.” She added that if the cells could be mass-produced in Finland, where Lehtimäki said they’re starting to be built, “that would be shocking to me.”
Lehtimäki declined to reveal any data or details about the battery, arguing that Donut Lab needs to protect its trade secrets. But, he said, manufacturers have been testing his batteries under nondisclosure agreements, and outside groups he declined to name would validate his claims in the coming weeks.
In the meantime, Verge is taking orders in the United States and Europe for an electric motorcycle that starts at $29,900 and promises to charge from zero to 80% in under 10 minutes and travel over 200 miles on a single charge thanks to its new solid-state battery. It’s an overhauled version of the company’s TS Pro motorcycle, whose previous battery had the same range and price but weighed more and charged in 35 minutes. A new long-range version starts at $34,900 and promises to travel 370 miles on a single charge.
The standard TS Pro has been on the market since 2022. It holds a Guinness World Record for the longest electric motorcycle trip on a single charge, reaching 193 miles on a loop around London last year. The promised improvements in the overhauled TS Pro are plausible, according to Braun, but don’t require solid-state batteries.
“It might be hard, however, everything stated (except cost) could be done with high-end conventional cells,” he said in an email.
Whether or not Verge and Donut Lab deliver, scientists and companies will continue to study solid-state batteries.
“There’s a real need for energy-dense solid-state batteries,” Hatzell said. “I do think they’re going to exist one day, and there’s been significant progress in the last decade.”
She envisions solid-state batteries being used in flying drones, autonomous robots, and other products for which consumers might be willing to pay more to pack as much energy into as little battery weight as possible.
Niche, high-performance electric motorcycles also make sense as an early use for solid-state batteries, according to Braun. Eventually, they could take over the luxury EV market, or even the mass market for electric cars and trucks — but they may never get cheap enough or good enough to knock out standard lithium-ion batteries, Braun said.
“Regular batteries are getting better,” he said. “Maybe solid-state costs never quite get down there, and so they’re only [used] at the highest performance regime.”
But Lehtimäki, like many battery entrepreneurs before him, insists the solid-state revolution is nigh.
“We would be just stupid to go and say some lies in front of the whole world where, in a matter of weeks, people will be opening these battery packs and scanning these cells,” he said in a phone interview with The Post. “We don’t need to go and scam people. … Every single thing I said in the video is not an exaggeration of any kind. It’s fact, and people will be shocked.”
For generations, wealth has been regionally segregated in Southeastern Pennsylvania, with Philadelphia considered until recently the poorest big city in America, while three of its four collar counties had the lowest poverty rates in the state.
But having fewer people in poverty doesn’t mean there are none who are struggling in the suburbs. More than 180,000 people across Bucks, Chester, Montgomery, and Delaware Counties live below the poverty line, yet for too long, experts say, those communities have underserved those in need.
Recently, however, suburban leaders have been stepping up their efforts to help those with low incomes. It’s a heartening and welcome shift in attitude.
Poverty is not solely a big-city ailment. With median incomes in Bucks, Chester, and Montgomery Counties nearly twice what they are within Philadelphia, it’s very difficult for poor and working-class people to maintain a suburban lifestyle.
That is especially true when it comes to issues of land use and transportation policy, which experts often treat as intertwined.
In the suburbs, the vast majority of developable land is zoned for detached, single-family homes on large lots, and nearby transit options are often both slow and infrequent. The result is that median housing values in Bucks, Montgomery, and Chester Counties range between $432,000 and $476,000, compared with roughly $250,000 in Philadelphia. Delaware County, which is home to both more suburban areas like Swarthmore and urbanized municipalities like Chester and Upper Darby, splits the difference at $331,000.
This so-called snob zoning doesn’t just prevent poor, working-class, and sometimes even middle-class people from moving into or remaining in many suburban areas; it also makes it harder to get around without a car, which raises the cost of living. While a monthly transit fare card costs between $1,400 and $3,000 per year, AAA estimates the average cost of car ownership is about $12,000. While roughly three-quarters of households in Philadelphia typically don’t have more than one vehicle, most suburban households have two or more. Between the cost of housing and the cost of transportation, that’s an average of more than $60,000 per year just to get by and around.
The de facto suburban gatekeeping essentially compels low-income people to choose to live in the city — a reality that has allowed past suburban leaders to lean into the widely held perception that poverty is a Philadelphia problem. In effect, economic researchers say, that’s meant the suburban poor have basically been left to fend for themselves.
Thankfully, there are signs that things are beginning to change.
(From left) Jamila Winder, Neil Makhija, and Tom DiBello are seated together on stage at the Montgomery County Community College gymnasium during their swearing-in as county commissioners in 2024.
In Montgomery County, Commissioners Jamila Winder, Tom DiBello, and Neil Makhija have demonstrated a strong bipartisan commitment to address housing needs.
While the county had zero full-time homeless shelters by the end of 2024 — even as the number of unhoused people grew — the commissioners have invested in an additional 190 short-term shelter beds, split between Pottstown, Norristown, and Lansdale. The commissioners should be commended for doing right by the wider community, even as they faced opposition from some constituents who did not want shelter space available.
The commissioners have also attended community meetings to lobby in favor of housing plans. Makhija has also proposed creating a new grant system that would reward municipalities that opt to allow for more construction. This would help address reasonable concerns about the infrastructure needs of new residents.
There is evidence that efforts to build more inclusive and sustainable suburbs have broadened support. Three of the five new Lower Merion Township commissioners mentioned walkability or pedestrian safety as priorities; Joi Washington — the new mayor of Media — wants to take advantage of her borough’s exceptionally strong transit connections; and Delaware County opened its first-ever health department four years ago.
If these efforts succeed, a future where poverty is no longer concentrated within Philadelphia — and the poorest can access the support they need, no matter where they live — may be within our grasp.
DEAR ABBY: A few years back, my brother gave me a substantial amount of cryptocurrency. A couple of years after that, he did something that hurt me and my husband deeply and destroyed any trust I had in him. As a result, I have greatly reduced contact with him as well as my entire family.
When I explained how what he did made me feel and how it affected my life, my brother “sort of” apologized, but it wasn’t genuine — and during this fake apology, he mentioned he wanted his crypto back.
Because I had had some financial difficulties, I couldn’t give back the money. The cryptocurrency had been a GIFT. When he gave it to me, there was no agreement about paying him back or what to do with it. (He confessed that he had made a huge mistake by giving it to me.) When I told him I couldn’t give it back, he sort of let it go. But now we are barely on speaking terms, and I feel awkward because I can feel his resentment.
I no longer trust him, and I’m not sure how to proceed. I’m not angry; I’m just cautious because of his previous careless actions and because he lacks a verbal filter, especially toward my husband, who is sensitive. How do I deal with the fallout?
— ONCE BITTEN, TWICE SHY
DEAR O.B.T.S.: I wish you had gone into more detail in the second sentence of your letter. If I have read it correctly, your problems with your brother have less to do with the cryptocurrency debacle and far more about how he treats your husband. As I see it, you have every right to proceed with caution where your brother is concerned. If he can’t watch his mouth around your husband, some distance may be better for all of you.
** ** **
DEAR ABBY: I’m retired and have discovered a love for making bags, totes and purses with my sewing machine. A few years ago, I started doing local craft shows — not because I’ve turned this into a business, but because it helps clear out the growing inventory. Financially, we’re fine. I’m not risking money we don’t have.
My husband, who still works, strongly disapproves of this. He says I’ve made a job out of a hobby, and he thinks it’s silly since I don’t really make money. He has even suggested I’d be better off throwing my creations away. In truth, after a lifetime of working and raising kids, I finally have time to do something that makes ME happy.
I feel torn. Must I stop doing something I love to keep peace at home, or continue and risk his ongoing resentment? It’s heartbreaking to feel that every time I try something new, I’m met with resistance.
— STILL STITCHING IN THE SOUTH
DEAR STILL STITCHING: Your husband appears to be more than a little controlling by attempting to tell you how to spend your free time. Your hobby is what it is. It’s a source of pleasure — and it’s not meant to be another income stream. Continue doing what you enjoy and please do not buckle under the pressure.
ARIES (March 21-April 19). Your energy changes people, places and things. Even minor interactions prove this. Sometimes you lose sight of the difference you make, but being somewhat aware of it today will fuel and inspire your next move.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20). You’re quick on your feet today. Keep in mind that improvisation works best when it follows certain rules, like agreeing to the reality that is and adding on to it. Your spontaneous solutions will be brilliant, your whims inspired.
GEMINI (May 21-June 21). A question is all you need to get things started today. Asking a good one will open doors and reframe challenges into opportunities. A shared laugh will lighten the atmosphere. Humor acts as a reset button, restoring balance and goodwill.
CANCER (June 22-July 22). The moments that slip from your control teach you facets of your humanity. Knowing yourself in an imperfect moment allows you to connect with others. As your empathy grows, so will the fullness of your experience.
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22). How would things be different if you had their love? It’s the question to ponder. It’s not that you could come up with an entirely accurate answer, as there are many unknown factors, but exploring your expectations and projections will be most enlightening today.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22). You appreciate beauty in ordinary scenes. This attentiveness adds richness to the day and fuels creativity. You’ll be open to collaboration, but if it doesn’t come it’s even better for you because you’ll enjoy your own company so much today.
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23). There are things to be judiciously ignored for a time. Remember that most people are doing their best and acting in accordance with the understanding they currently hold. Give them time to work things out on their own and they’ll pleasantly surprise you.
SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 21). You don’t romanticize less-than-perfect circumstances, nor do you let them define you. These challenges add texture to your work, your relationships and your outlook.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21). Today would be frustrating for some people, but not you — this is just the challenge that you eat for breakfast. Lived experience has taught you to reframe, improvise and continue. Resources appear as needed; skills surface when called upon.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19). The work you did counts, but not in the way you were going for. That’s OK — and even better than you think, actually. Effort can be redirected. Stay open to multiple paths and you’ll thrive in a new reality you weren’t expecting.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18). What matters will occur face to face, and that’s what makes it so exciting. You never do know what the other person might do or say, and each moment is filled with risk and aliveness.
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20). You’ve already been many people, and more incarnations will unfold. Let it happen freely. You don’t have to worry about losing anything that’s “so you” because it’s impossible to lose what is indelibly yours.
TODAY’SBIRTHDAY (Jan. 24). Welcome to your Year of Emotional Fluency, in which feelings become useful information rather than interruptions. You read the room, honor your inner weather and respond with the emotional intelligence to make relationships golden. And yes, you keep getting promoted, befriended and paid for this very useful human skill. More highlights: thrilling times with a special person, game-night triumphs, an unforgettable collaboration with legendary results. Gemini and Scorpio adore you. Your lucky numbers are: 2, 10, 40, 33 and 14.
DENVER ― Standing in the hallway outside the Flyers locker room on Wednesday in Utah, coach Rick Tocchet said his team needed to learn “how to play winning hockey.”
Two nights later, they handed the NHL’s No. 1 team its second regulation loss at home this season. The Flyers wrapped up a three-game road trip with an impressive 7-3 win over the Colorado Avalanche, leaving the new “Death Valley” through Las Vegas, Salt Lake City, and Denver, with five out of six possible points.
It wasn’t easy, especially in the first period against Colorado’s high-octane offense, but Sam Ersson put on a show.
The Flyers’ goalie committed robbery several times as he faced 17 shots, including a torrent of high-danger chances by the Avalanche in the opening frame. Across the full 60 minutes, he would stop 32 of 35 shots on the way to his eighth win of the season.
Just 45 seconds into the game, the Flyers were shorthanded after Travis Konecny took a hooking call. Although the Avalanche entered the night ranked 26th on the power play, they still have guys like Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar who can score at will.
But Ersson stood up to the task. He stopped Martin Nečas with his glove and then stoned not just a Victor Olofsson snapshot from the bumper but Nečas on the rebound at the right post.
At even strength, after Konecny couldn’t control the puck and lost it in the Flyers’ end, Ersson had to make a save on a tipped shot by Gavin Brindley. But then he made a beauty of a glove save as the rebound went back to Brindley in the slot for the quick shot. With 3:33 left in the period, he made another impressive save, snaring a quick shot by Brock Nelson after the puck popped out to him in the slot.
Owen Tippett got the Flyers on the board first with a snipe from the right circle. The forward got the puck and skated through the neutral zone, going one-on-one with Avalanche defenseman Sam Malinski.
The speedster pushed Malinksi back and then put on the brakes. After the blueliner blocked the initial shot, Tippett picked up the loose puck and beat goalie Mackenzie Blackwood stick side.
Philly took a 2-0 lead with 63 seconds to go in the opening frame on a power-play goal by Denver Barkey. The second power-play unit of Cam York, Matvei Michkov, Tippett, Noah Cates, and Barkey had a great shift by maintaining pressure and composure.
Tippett sent the puck down to Matvei Michkov at the goal line by the right post. The Russian winger then fed it up to Barkey, who was waiting patiently in the right circle, and sent off a quick shot. The youngster, who scored his second career goal, also had the primary assist on Tippett’s goal.
Colorado is the NHL’s best for a reason, and they tied things up in the second period on goals by Parker Kelly and Olofsson. Christian Dvorak turned the puck over to Kelly in the Flyers’ end before Kelly finished the play by scooping up a rebound. Olofsson scored his goal after he got the puck and skated down into the left circle, beating Ersson glove-side.
But the Flyers did not break, and 32 seconds after Olofsson tied it 2-2, Bobby Brink gave the Flyers another lead.
Skating in on a two-on-one, Brink fed Cates, who didn’t get good wood on the puck. But he tracked it down, and he and Brink played catch before Brink used his feet to keep the puck loose. Brink, who returned to the lineup on Monday after missing six games with a concussion, got it back atop the crease and roofed it for his 13th goal of the season. He set a new career high.
Two-time Norris Trophy winner Cale Makar tied it back up 1:11 after Brink scored, but the Flyers came out for the third period on fire. They clearly learned from their mistakes in Wednesday’s 5-4 overtime loss to the Utah Mammoth and did not sit back.
Flyers right wing Matvei Michkov, center, puts a shot on Colorado Avalanche goaltender MacKenzie Blackwood, left, as Cale Makar covers in the second period.
Tippett scored his second of the game 56 seconds into the final frame to give the Flyers a 4-3 lead. Sean Couturier intercepted the puck near the Flyers’ blue line and started the rush up the ice. Tippett got the puck and kept it as Barkey went to the net. The power forward skated into the left circle and beat Blackwood glove side.
Sixty-four seconds later, Michkov notched his 11th goal of the season as he tipped in a point shot by Emil Andrae to make it 5-3. As the Flyers worked the puck around the boards, Michkov skated to the bottom of the left circle and planted himself perfectly for the deflection.
But the Flyers weren’t done finding the back of the net — led by Tippett, who would snag the second hat trick of his NHL career. Killing a penalty by Barkey, Tippett picked off a pass attempt by Makar inside the Flyers’ blue line and took off. He skated down the ice and put the puck five-hole for his 18th goal of the season.
And then the 21-year-old Michkov, who was skating well all night and had his legs, would add an empty-netter to seal the win. Konecny picked off a pass attempt — akin to his two goals against Vegas on Monday — before pulling the veteran move and passing the puck to Michkov for his second two-goal game of the season.
Breakaways
Forwards Nikita Grebenkin and Nic Deslauriers, and defenseman Hunter McDonald were the healthy scratches. … The Flyers have a three-game point streak. … Jamie Drysdale, Cates, and Michkov were all plus-3 on the night. … Tippett tied his career high with four points. … Garnet Hathaway got his first assist of the season on Michkov’s first goal, giving him two points in 44 games this season. … Konecny extended his point streak to four games (three goals, three assists).
Up next
The Flyers head home for a meeting with the New York Islanders on Monday (7 p.m., NBCSP).
A Virginia teen who admitted in court that he wanted to join ISIS pleaded guilty Thursday to attempted murder and related offenses for a stabbing attack last year on a Florence Township police officer, Burlington County Prosecutor LaChia L. Bradshaw said Friday.
Fasihullah Safar, 17, of Alexandria, Va., was charged as an adult and will be sentenced to 18 years in prison under a plea deal, Bradshaw said. He is scheduled to be formally sentenced on March 26 in Superior Court in Mount Holly.
The police officer who was stabbed several times in the chest was wearing a ballistic vest that prevented more significant injuries, Bradshaw said.
On March 21, 2025, Safar, who was 16 at the time, was driving a stolen vehicle when he intentionally caused a crash with another vehicle, Bradshaw said. A Florence police vehicle responding to the scene was then struck multiple times by Safar’s vehicle.
Safar’s vehicle became inoperable on Route 130 near Station Road. When officers arrived, Safar charged them while armed with a knife, Bradshaw said. Besides the officer who was stabbed, suffering a laceration to his torso and facial injuries, two other officers sustained minor injuries. During the struggle, Safar also cut himself.
In court, Safar admitted that in the months before the confrontation, he had begun following the Islamic State organization, Bradshaw said. Safar had indicated on social media that he planned to join the group.
Safar admitted that he shouted “Allahu akbar” during the confrontation with police, and that he intended to kill one of the officers, Bradshaw said.
Prior to the violent encounter with police in Florence Township, he was being sought by authorities, including the FBI, after he allegedly trespassed at a school in Fredericksburg, Va., causing the local district to close all schools.
A school resource officer approached Safar, who then fled and later allegedly stole a vehicle.
One report later said Safar had been investigated by the FBI after the teen allegedly posed on social media with what appeared to be a firearm.
Kelsey Fuentes of Philadelphia (front) chants “No more money for ICE’s crime” as she marches east on Market Street during the Philly stands with Minneapolis Ice Out For Good protest march that began at Philadelphia’s City Hall on Friday, Jan. 23, 2026.A transgender woman from Philadelphia holds up her sign during the Philly stands with Minneapolis Ice Out For Good protest at Philadelphia’s City Hall on Friday, Jan. 23, 2026.Protesters gather during the Philly stands with Minneapolis Ice Out For Good protest at Philadelphia’s City Hall on Friday, Jan. 23, 2026.Alex Kilcullen of King of Prussia (seated) participates during the Philly stands with Minneapolis Ice Out For Good protest at Philadelphia’s City Hall on Friday, Jan. 23, 2026. Kilcullen is from the Deer clan of the Cherokee tribe.Community College of Philadelphia leaders Maritsa Hernandez-Orsini (left) and Maria Baez were vocal during the Philly stands with Minneapolis Ice Out For Good protest at Philadelphia’s City Hall on Friday, Jan. 23, 2026.Protesters gather during the Philly stands with Minneapolis Ice Out For Good protest at Philadelphia’s City Hall on Friday, Jan. 23, 2026.Protesters march up Eighth Street, towards the immigration offices, during the Philly stands with Minneapolis Ice Out For Good protest at Philadelphia’s City Hall on Friday, Jan. 23, 2026.Courtney Mitchell of Philadelphia (right) during the Philly stands with Minneapolis Ice Out For Good protest at Philadelphia’s City Hall on Friday, Jan. 23, 2026.
