Connect with us

Published

on

An agent involved in the state of Iowa’s investigation into wagering activities of college athletes recently testified that the probe was an “illegal search” and that he was “misled” by those in charge.

A motion filed Tuesday on behalf of Iowa State wrestler Paniro Johnson cited a deposition Friday by Mark Ludwick, a special agent with the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigations, which led the wagering inquiry of athletes at both Iowa State and Iowa. Johnson was among 15 college athletes charged. He and former ISU football player Eyioma Uwazurike, now with the Denver Broncos, were charged with felony identity theft. Christopher Sandy, Johnson’s attorney, filed the motion seeking records about the investigation.

According to the filing, Ludwick, a state witness, testified that he was told by an agent leading the operation that the investigation would be “purely administrative” and would not result in criminal charges. Ludwick interviewed Iowa State football player Isaiah Lee under that premise, and received confirmation from Lee that he had placed sports wagers under another person’s account.

Troy Nelson, a special agent in charge for Iowa DCI, “congratulated” Ludwick “for obtaining a confession,” according to the motion. Lee was charged with tampering with records — he allegedly falsified information used to register accounts on mobile sports wagering apps — and left ISU’s team in August.

“Ludwick realized the purpose of the investigation was criminal in nature, with the sole targets being male Division I student athletes at the University of Iowa and Iowa State University,” the court filing reads. “Special Agent Ludwick advised his superiors that he would no longer participate in the investigation, and requested reassignment.”

Ludwick also said in his deposition that he knows of other DCI agents who refused to participate in the investigation for the same reasons.

Ludwick “concluded that Iowa’s DCI conducted an illegal search” of Iowa and Iowa State athletes without obtaining a warrant to use “GeoFence” technology to obtain wagering activity inside the schools’ athletic facilities, which are restricted to athletes, coaches and staff.

A separate motion filed Monday by Lee’s attorney accused the state of launching a “warrantless” investigation that targeted high-profile college athletes.

The motion filed Monday, seeking discretionary discovery, states that Brian Sanger, special agent for Iowa DCI, who led the task force for the investigation, and a team of DCI agents acted “without reasonable cause,” noting that no warrant, complaints or tips of illegal gambling had been obtained before they began the investigation. Sanger obtained access to a software tool called Kibana that allowed him to view the use of online betting applications in certain facilities through a “GeoFence.”

According to Monday’s motion, Sanger did so without a warrant, complaints or tips of illegal gambling occurring in Iowa and Iowa State’s athletic facilities.

“The DCI does not comment on ongoing court proceedings,” David Jobes, assistant director for Iowa DCI, said in a statement to ESPN. “DCI agents involved in the investigation act as witnesses, and it would be inappropriate to make any comments regarding legal filings or other court proceedings.”

Johnson is not participating in any wrestling meets attached to Iowa State, only unattached tournaments where he pays his own way. Several football players also lost their eligibility for the season, including ISU starting quarterback Hunter Dekkers.

“From Day 1, when my athletes called me on that morning in early May, I knew this thing was a mess and I knew it was mismanaged and I knew it was mishandled, and I’m glad it’s coming to light now,” Cyclones wrestling coach Kevin Dresser told reporters Tuesday.

“These athletes served really harsh penalties in the NCAA world, probably harsher than I think they should have. But at the same time, I’m not dismissing or minimizing that they made a mistake.”

Continue Reading

Sports

Oilers’ Walman fined $10K for Game 3 incidents

Published

on

By

Oilers' Walman fined K for Game 3 incidents

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Edmonton Oilers defenseman Jake Walman was fined a total of $10,000 by the NHL on Tuesday for two separate incidents in their Game 3 loss to the Florida Panthers in the Stanley Cup Final.

Walman was fined $5,000 for “an incident involving Florida’s bench” during the second period Monday night. Walman had his glove stolen by Panthers winger A.J. Greer, who deposited the glove into the benches. Walman responded by taking his water bottle and spraying a stream at Florida’s players while standing at his own bench, at least four times.

“Yeah, I mean I obviously did that for a reason. I won’t go into the details. It’s just gamesmanship, I guess,” Walman said after the 6-1 loss to Florida, which gave the Panthers a 2-1 series lead. “I’ve just got to realize there’s cameras everywhere and they see that stuff.”

Walman was also fined $5,000 for roughing Florida’s Matthew Tkachuk in the third period. He delivered a series of gloved punches to Tkachuk’s head while the Panthers winger’s arms were being held by Edmonton defenseman John Klingberg. Walman was assessed a pair of minor penalties for roughing as well as a minor penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct.

The fines were the maximum allowed under the NHL collective bargaining agreement. The money goes to the Players’ Emergency Assistance Fund.

The Oilers and Panthers combined for 140 penalty minutes in Game 3, the fourth-highest total in a Stanley Cup Final game. Center Leon Draisaitl called their third period, which featured 122 combined penalty minutes, “a UFC fight” between the teams.

“It was just penalty chaos tonight,” Oilers goalie Stuart Skinner said. “I’m not sure what I really make of it. I think you just see there’s a lot of emotions that are going into this. We’re trying to win a Cup. They’re trying to win a Cup. So there’s a fight.”

Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final is scheduled for Thursday night in Sunrise.

Continue Reading

Sports

Oilers’ Knoblauch undecided on Game 4 goalie

Published

on

By

Oilers' Knoblauch undecided on Game 4 goalie

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — The Edmonton Oilers are mulling a change in goal after being drubbed 6-1 by Florida in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final on Monday.

The Oilers now trail the series 2-1 following consecutive losses, and coach Kris Knoblauch said Tuesday he “hasn’t decided” whether Edmonton will go back to Stuart Skinner — who was pulled early in the third period on Monday after allowing five goals on 23 shots — or tag in backup netminder Calvin Pickard.

“We’ll announce [our decision] before the game,” said Knoblauch. “I think a lot of the games where Stu maybe wasn’t on his A-game, our team wasn’t on their A-game in front of him. So, I don’t think there’s any bad goals. Maybe [we needed] an extra save. But doesn’t matter how well Stu played [in Game 3], it wouldn’t have made any difference in the game most likely. I’m not holding anything against Stu on that performance.”

Knoblauch avoided putting the weight of Edmonton’s defeat on Skinner but he also acknowledged Pickard as a viable option to replace him — and not for the first time in this postseason. Skinner was tapped as the Oilers’ starter in their first-round series against Los Angeles but gave up 11 goals through the series’ first two games (both Oilers losses) and Knoblauch inserted Pickard at the team’s No. 1 for Game 3. The veteran was excellent from there, peeling off six straight wins as Edmonton rallied to down the Kings and advance into a second-round bout against the Vegas Golden Knights.

It was in Game 2 of that series where Pickard suffered a lower-body injury, and Skinner was forced back into the starter’s net. He, in turn, responded with a string of strong showings, going 6-2 with a .931 SV% and 1.73 GAA as the Oilers closed out the Golden Knights and then downed Dallas in a five-game Western Conference final.

The Cup Final — a rematch of last year’s championship against the Panthers — has been tougher on Skinner. He’s 1-2, with an .866 SV% and 3.74 GAA. It’s a stat line that has at least given Knoblauch pause to consider going back to Pickard on Thursday.

“In games like [Monday], we’re down 5-1. We’re not playing very well in front of him,” said Knoblauch. “I don’t think that’s fair for [Skinner] to stick in there and play through it. And here we’ve got a goaltender [with] Picks, he’s been pretty good, 6-0 in the playoffs, hasn’t played [lately]. And whether we use him again, here’s a little opportunity for him to get some playing time [in Game 3]. So, when we do use him, he’s a little more comfortable when he goes in that net. So I think it’s one, just allowing Picks some playing time, just in case we do need him and do choose to use him at a certain point, but also give Stu some time off and not have him play through that circumstance.”

Whoever does earn the Oilers’ crease for Game 4 will require more support up front than Edmonton delivered on Monday. Florida manhandled its competition in every facet, holding the Oilers’ top skaters Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl at bay while gaining their own offensive momentum. Edmonton’s parade to the penalty box — which included 21 infractions for a total of 85 penalty minutes — gave the Panthers an advantage they didn’t waste by not only scoring three power play goals but frustrating the Oilers into unraveling entirely in a chaotic third period line brawl.

“The game is over with, what, 11 minutes left, right [when Florida is up 5-1],” said Draisaitl. “And then all hell breaks loose and it’s a UFC fight. I think overall, we can be a little bit more disciplined and stay away from that. But there’s also times where we’ve handled [those situations] really well.”

Edmonton will have to find that composure again in Game 4 if it wants to even the series heading back home. The Oilers had two days to get ready and decided to practice on Tuesday rather than follow the Panthers’ lead with a day off. That was by design to flush the system — physically and emotionally — of what happened the night before.

“We obviously didn’t feel great waking up,” said Mattias Ekholm. “But getting together again, get on the ice, we all feel a lot better about it. I think we’re really good. We’ve just got to have a moment of realization this morning of, yeah, we’re three wins away. We’re one win away from having a best out of three with two home games. There’s a lot of positives. Sometimes you get a little lost in that when you lose a game. We had a really good practice today where we’re upbeat and we know we can be better.”

It’s a similar refrain to what the Oilers proclaimed after Game 2, a 5-4 double-overtime loss that tied the series after Edmonton took Game 1 in overtime 4-3. Both sides have said they expected a tight final and Florida coach Paul Maurice reiterated on Tuesday his group his preparing for that to be the case again in Game 4.

“I think the first two games are indicative of what Game 4 is going to look like,” said Maurice. “We’re not going to look at that game and say, ‘That’s the way it should look if we play our game.’ I liked our Game 1 in some ways better than Game 2. There was a piece or two that we had to kind of clean up. I think we did a little bit. But I think we get back to Games 1 and 2. You’re thinking about short shifts [in Game 4], use your whole bench, because you’re probably going overtime.”

The Oilers don’t care how it comes together for them from here, only that past performance won’t impact future success. Edmonton is, as Ekholm pointed out, the NHL’s oldest team this season, bringing with them ample experience to rebound from a night they’d sooner forget.

“You can’t dwell on things,” said 20-year veteran Corey Perry. “You can’t change the outcome after the game has ended. So, you look at what you didn’t do right or can improve on, take some positives out of it or whatever. But you have to flush it. The next one’s the biggest one. That’s how we think about it. Yeah, we lost the game. Get ready for the next one. Move on.”

Continue Reading

Sports

Avs’ Makar wins 2nd Norris as top defenseman

Published

on

By

Avs' Makar wins 2nd Norris as top defenseman

Colorado Avalanche offensive-minded defenseman Cale Makar is the recipient of the James Norris Memorial Trophy for the second time in his career, the NHL announced Wednesday.

The award is presented “to the defense player who demonstrates throughout the season the greatest all-round ability in the position,” as selected by the Professional Hockey Writers Association.

“Any time you get recognized for something like this, it’s very cool,” Makar, 26, said. “It’s very special to be able to (win) this a second time. To have the group of guys that we did — it seems cliche to say, but it’s truly a team award.

“We had a fun year and it’ll be more fun hopefully continuing, but this one’s for them.”

Makar learned that he won the award during a recent golf outing with family and friends in Calgary, his hometown.

He joins Hall of Fame members Bobby Orr (eight times), Denis Potvin and Paul Coffey (three times), and Rod Langway (two times) as players to win multiple Norris Trophies before turning 27. Current Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Erik Karlsson also won twice before his 27th birthday.

Makar took home 176 of the 191 first-place votes and recorded 1,861 voting points to win the Norris Trophy for the first time since 2021-22. He has been a finalist for the award in five of his first six NHL seasons.

Zach Werenski of the Columbus Blue Jackets received 13 first-place votes and finished with 1,266 points, while Vancouver Canucks captain Quinn Hughes had two first-place votes and 918 points. Hughes was seeking to become the first repeat winner of the award since Hall of Famer Nicklas Lidstrom of the Detroit Red Wings captured three in a row from 2005-06 through 2007-08.

Makar opened the season with a 13-game point streak. He led all NHL defensemen in goals (30), assists (62) and points (92) this season.

Continue Reading

Trending