Bedard an Olympic option despite 4 Nations snub

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2 months ago

December 6, 2024

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Greg Wyshynski, ESPNDec 5, 2024, 12:59 PM ET
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Team Canada general manager Don Sweeney indicated that Chicago Blackhawks star Connor Bedard is still in consideration for the 2026 Winter Olympics despite being snubbed from Canada’s NHL 4 Nations Face-Off roster this week.

Bedard, 19, was the NHL rookie of the year last season. He had dominating performances for Canada at the 2023 world juniors (23 points in seven games) and the 2024 IIHF world championships (5 goals in 10 games). That sparked speculation that Bedard would make the roster for the 4 Nations Face-Off, a four-team exhibition tournament that’s replacing the NHL All-Star Game this season, to better prepare him for the 2026 Olympic tournament in Italy.

But Bedard has struggled in his second NHL season, with five goals in 26 games after scoring 22 goals in 68 games as a rookie. He has 19 points for the Blackhawks.

Sweeney, who is the general manager of the Boston Bruins, said that Bedard is part of “the next wave of great players” for Canada but one who needs to gain experience before making the leap to the national team.

“It’s his second time around the league. There’s some challenges associated with that. He’s working through that, in a situation where he gets all the attention possible from the best players that he’s playing against each and every night,” said Sweeney. “So I think he’s living and breathing it right now and it’s only going to help him to continue to build his résumé, and we’re excited about that.”

Sweeney, who will be the assistant to GM Doug Armstrong for the Canadian men’s hockey Olympic team, and Team Canada coach Jon Cooper both expected Bedard would push for a roster spot in 2026.

They also said the 4 Nations Face-Off roster, which features just one player born after 1998, was built for this tournament rather than as a test run for the 2026 roster.

“We built this team to win the 4 Nations. The Olympics is still a year away. Are there players that are going to develop and take strides in that time? There’s no question,” said Cooper, who is the coach of the Tampa Bay Lightning. “Especially some of these younger players where your development continues. That’s just going to make decisions tougher.”

Sweeney said that’s why Team Canada had a “wider lens” in looking at players such as Bedard who might not be ready for the 4 Nations tournament but could make the cut in 2026.

“We wanted to identify players that are going to project out down the road. Players that might not necessarily be ready to push somebody out of a job that we felt had earned it at this point,” he said. “We’re going to have to continue to have those [players] stack up on top of each other in the next year and a half and make a really hard decision on several emerging players. We’re incredibly excited about them, but we couldn’t lose sight of the fact that we were building a team for February.”

It’s not unprecedented for Canada to leave a young phenom off its national team roster. Sidney Crosby was left off the Canadian Olympic team in 2006, when he was 18 years old, despite playing at a point-per-game pace as a rookie. Steven Stamkos didn’t make the 2010 Olympic team despite scoring 51 goals as a 19-year-old in his second NHL season.

Meanwhile, the player who finished second to Bedard in the rookie race last season — 22-year-old Minnesota Wild defenseman Brock Faber — made the cut for Team USA at the 4 Nations Face-Off.

Sports

Ichiro snubber still a mystery after ballot reveal

Published

13 hours ago

February 4, 2025

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Ichiro snubber still a mystery after ballot reveal

Associated Press

Feb 4, 2025, 11:24 AM ET

NEW YORK — The Hall of Fame voter who declined to select Ichiro Suzuki remains a mystery.

All 321 voters who allowed their ballots to be made public Tuesday by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America selected the Japanese star. Suzuki appeared on 393 of 394 ballots when voting was announced on Jan. 21.

“There’s one writer that I wasn’t able to get a vote from,” he said through an interpreter later that week. “I would like to invite him over to my house, and we’ll have a drink together, and we’ll have a good chat.”

The Hall’s rules allow each voter the choice whether to make a ballot public. The BBWAA voted 80-19 at its December 2016 meeting to propose making all ballots public, but the Hall of Fame’s board of directors decided to leave the decision up to each voter.

Mariano Rivera remains the only player to get 100% of the vote from the BBWAA, appearing on all 425 ballots in 2019. Derek Jeter was chosen on 395 of 396 in 2020.

Suzuki, CC Sabathia and Billy Wagner were elected by the BBWAA this year and will be inducted into the Hall at Cooperstown on July 27 along with Dave Parker and Dick Allen, voted in by the classic era committee in December.

Suzuki was a two-time AL batting champion and 10-time All-Star and Gold Glove outfielder, hitting .311 with 117 homers, 780 RBIs and 509 stolen bases with Seattle (2001-12, 2018-19), the New York Yankees (2012-14) and Miami (2015-17).

He is perhaps the best contact hitter ever, with 1,278 hits in Nippon Professional Baseball and 3,089 in MLB, including a season-record 262 in 2004. His combined total of 4,367 exceeds Pete Rose’s MLB record of 4,256.

Sports

New NASCAR rule to reward fastest lap in race

Published

14 hours ago

February 4, 2025

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Associated Press

Feb 4, 2025, 10:49 AM ET

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — NASCAR introduced a new rule Tuesday that will award one point to the team and driver with the fastest single lap in each race.

The “Xfinity Fastest Lap” was added as part of a contract renewal between NASCAR and Xfinity. The new deal awards a point for the fastest lap in all three of NASCAR’s national series, continues Xfinity’s role as entitlement sponsor of the second-tier series through 2025 and includes a multiyear agreement for Xfinity to extend its premium partnership with the Cup Series.

IndyCar has a fast-lap rule, but it was abolished in Formula 1 ahead of this season.

“We’re not just entering Year 11 of our partnership. We’re embarking on Year 1 of a renewed relationship with NASCAR filled with fresh energy and exciting opportunities to enhance the competition on the track in a way that has never been done before,” said Matt Lederer, Comcast’s vice president of brand partnership and engagement.

Sports

‘Proud’ NHLPA, PHPA choose to join AFL-CIO

Published

15 hours ago

February 4, 2025

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'Proud' NHLPA, PHPA choose to join AFL-CIO

Associated Press

Feb 3, 2025, 08:05 PM ET

WASHINGTON — The National Hockey League Players’ Association and Professional Hockey Players’ Association are affiliating with the AFL-CIO and joining the labor organization’s sports council, they announced Monday.

Their membership brings the number of unions involved in the AFL-CIO, the biggest labor federation in the U.S., to 63, representing more than 15 million workers. It comes as collective bargaining talks are ongoing at multiple levels of the sport.

“Whether our work is on the rink, in the classroom or on the factory floor, every worker deserves a voice on the job and the power that comes with union membership,” AFL-CIO president Liz Shuler said. “We are thrilled to welcome the NHLPA and the PHPA into the federation and our Sports Council, and we look forward to supporting their work to ensure strong union contracts, fair wages, safe working conditions and professional development opportunities for professional hockey players.”

The NHLPA represents roughly 750 players across 32 teams, while the PHPA has 1,800 members in the American Hockey League and ECHL.

“The NHLPA’s membership is proud to join the AFL-CIO and its sports council during this important moment in the labor movement,” NHLPA executive director Marty Walsh said. “We look forward to working together with other players’ associations and unions from across North America to ensure that workers in all industries have a collective voice in fighting for fair wages and safe and equitable workplaces.”

The AFL-CIO formed a sports council in 2022 and already included unions representing players in the NFL, WNBA, Major League Soccer and National Women’s Soccer League.

“Our members are excited about taking an active role in working towards better outcomes for working people in every sector of the economy,” PHPA executive director Brian Ramsay said. “As we begin collective bargaining negotiations, our members will now enjoy the full support of the AFL-CIO at the bargaining table. This is what solidarity is all about.”