Jets letting Pionk recover for playoff ‘long run’
Winnipeg Jets defenseman Neal Pionk is considered week-to-week because of a lower-body injury, coach Scott Arniel announced Friday.
Pionk logged 16:18 of ice time in Winnipeg’s 2-1 victory over the New York Rangers on Tuesday before exiting with the injury.
“[He] tried to get through it,” Arniel said. “We do need him for the long run here, so as much as he wants to play, this is the right decision. … If you have plans to play into June, you’re going to need your roster. It’s proven. There’s injuries that happen, situations that happen, you’re going to have to go deep [in the playoffs].”
Defenseman Luke Schenn, who was acquired at the NHL trade deadline on March 7, is expected to assume more responsibility in Pionk’s absence.
Pionk, 29, has 37 points (9 goals, 28 assists) and a plus-21 rating in 66 games this season. He averages 22:09 of ice time per game.
He has totaled 254 points (43 goals, 211 assists) in 533 career regular-season games with the Rangers (2017-19) and Jets.
The Pittsburgh Steelers and safety DeShon Elliott have agreed to a two-year, $12.5 million extension with $9.21 million guaranteed, a source confirmed to ESPN.
Elliott, 28, was one of the Steelers’ best run defenders last year with 2 forced fumbles, 3 fumble recoveries, 4 tackles for loss and 108 combined tackles.
NFL Network first reported the deal.
A former sixth-round pick, Elliott spent his first four seasons in the league with the Baltimore Ravens and Detroit Lions before joining the Miami Dolphins for one year.
The Steelers signed Elliott as a free agent to a two-year deal before the 2024 season.
He has 395 tackles in 72 career games.
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Tisha Thompson
Ippei Mizuhara, the disgraced former interpreter for Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani, is in federal prison in Pennsylvania, a spokesperson for the Federal Bureau of Prisons told ESPN on Monday.
Mizuhara, 40, was ordered to surrender to federal authorities by Monday. He is in custody at Federal Correctional Institution Allenwood Low, a low-security facility, after being sentenced to 57 months in prison for stealing nearly $17 million from Ohtani.
Mizuhara was initially ordered to report to prison in March, but a federal judge granted the delay. The reasons for the delay remain under seal.
Mizuhara’s attorney declined ESPN’s request for comment, but previously stated that he expects Mizuhara, a Japanese citizen, to eventually be deported.
The Dodgers fired Mizuhara in March 2024 after an ESPN investigation revealed he sent millions in wire transfers from Ohtani’s account to an illegal bookmaker. He pleaded guilty to bank fraud and filing a false tax return in June 2024, admitting that he placed about 19,000 bets with the bookie over a two-year period and accumulated over $40 million in debt.
The bookmaker, Mathew Bowyer, pleaded guilty in August to running an illegal gambling business, money laundering and subscribing a false tax return. He is awaiting sentencing.
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