At a Glance
- The Jan. 7, 2026 Connections: Sports Edition puzzle (No. 471) is now live
- Yellow group: NHL teams with singular nicknames
- Blue group was the toughest for the writer; purple felt easiest
- Why it matters: Daily sports-trivia buffs can check their answers or get unstuck
The Athletic’s daily Connections: Sports Edition puzzle for January 7 is here, and today’s grid mixes NHL names, track gear, MLB skippers, and UC mascots.
How to Play & Where to Find It
Published by The Athletic (owned by The New York Times), the puzzle sits outside the NYT Games app but appears inside The Athletic app and free online.
Need a nudge? The four color-coded hints, from simplest to hardest, are:
- Yellow: On the ice
- Green: Run and jump
- Blue: Baseball bosses
- Purple: Golden State schools
Today’s Group Answers
Yellow – NHL teams with singular nicknames:
- Avalanche
- Kraken
- Lightning
- Mammoth
Green – bits of track-and-field equipment:
- baton
- hurdle
- javelin
- pole
Blue – MLB managers:
- Cash
- Counsell
- Marmol
- Vogt
Purple – University of California mascots in the singular:
- Banana Slug
- Bruin
- Gaucho
- Golden Bear
Notoriously Tough Past Categories
Some grids that stumped players include:
- Serie A clubs: Atalanta, Juventus, Lazio, Roma
- WNBA MVPs: Catchings, Delle Donne, Fowles, Stewart
- Premier League nicknames: Bees, Cherries, Foxes, Hammers
- Homophones of NBA names: Barns, Connect, Heart, Hero
Key Takeaways
- Puzzle difficulty hinges on your sport-specific knowledge
- Today’s purple group offers a rare easy win for UC-savvy fans
- Check The Athletic’s site or app for tomorrow’s new grid
Whether you breezed through or needed these answers, the next challenge drops in 24 hours.
