The emotional farewell is still a couple weeks away, but Sam Wheeler has already shared a heartfelt suggestion with her hockey-playing husband.
“When we’ve talked about it, basically what we came down to is she says, ‘Don’t just leave and play just three games. That would be a waste of time,’” Winnipeg Jets captain Blake Wheeler said during a video conference with reporters after completing Day 1 of training camp on Monday. “At least give me something to entertain me.’ So, that’s kind of where we’ve left it for now and hopefully we can go on a little bit of a run and give everyone back home something to cheer about.”
Wheeler is the father of three young children and the prospect of being away from his family for an extended period of time in the middle of what would otherwise be the offseason isn’t considered to be an optimal circumstance.
But in the midst of a pandemic, sacrifices are being made by every player in the NHL that is about to participate in the 24-team tournament in the chase for the Stanley Cup.
So as the Jets returned to the ice on Monday, there was Wheeler holding court on a zoom call, discussing what it was like to be back on the ice with his teammates for the first time as the real preparations for a best-of-five series with the Calgary Flames began in earnest.
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Wheeler is a devoted family man, but he’s also passionate about the pursuit of the Stanley Cup — and that’s why he’s done everything in his power to stay ready for what could be one of the wildest rides of his 12-year NHL career.
Prior to the pause in March, this season had already been a roller-coaster of emotions for Wheeler and company.
Never mind the bitter taste of being bounced in the opening round of the 2019 Stanley Cup playoffs, when the Jets entered the post-season with high expectations after reaching the Western Conference final the previous spring.
On the eve of training camp, Dustin Byfuglien asked for and received a personal leave of absence from Jets general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff, citing a lack of desire to play hockey.
Byfuglien never returned and his contract was mutually terminated in April, meaning the Jets had to replace their entire right side of the blue line and five regulars total on the back end.
Injuries are a fact of life for all teams, but the Jets lost 324 man games this season.
Veteran centre Bryan Little suffered a concussion in the final exhibition game, then suffered a perforated ear drum (and another suspected concussion) when he was hit by a slapshot in a game against the New Jersey Devils on Nov. 5.
Little didn’t come back to play either, and while there was some thought he might be healthy enough to return in July, he’s not part of the Jets return-to-play roster — and can’t be added.
“We’ve been through a lot this year already, (with) the amount of injuries we had, the amount of adversity we’ve gone through,” Wheeler said. “Buff retiring. Losing Bryan Little to a serious injury earlier this season. These are all things you can’t account for before a season.
“Our group has been really tight-knit through all that all year. We’ve had to kind of fight as a team to make it to this point, to even be playing in a playoff position. But I think we’re going to have to lean on each other, certainly. Everyone’s going to be homesick, everyone’s going to miss their families. We’re really only going to have each other to have that face-to-face and quality time.”
Wheeler has been a teammate of Little’s since he was traded to the Atlanta Thrashers by the Boston Bruins in February 2011 and tried to put Little’s absence into words.
“Of course it’s hard not to have Bryan around. He’s been here from Day 1 and one of our best players and the guy everyone looks forward to seeing every day, and one of our hardest workers,” Wheeler said. “Everything you’d want in a pro hockey player, that’s what Bryan Little’s been here for nine years. We’ve missed him all year, we miss him now. More importantly we’re just hoping for the best for him. That’s really all that matters, that he’s taking care of himself and his health first.”
The long-term health of Little remains the priority and the questions surrounding his future will linger until next season’s training camp — and possibly beyond, though optimism remains the additional time off will allow him to resume his career eventually.
Like all of the 24 teams participating in the tournament, the ultimate goal for the Jets is easy to identify, even if sizing up the competition after a four-month break makes things a bit more difficult to predict.
“Every team has a chance,” Jets left winger Mathieu Perreault said. “And we’re healthy right now, so we like our chances. We’re strong in every aspect of the game, so we see this challenge as a good chance for us to win a Stanley Cup. This is how I see it.”
It will take 19 wins for that dream to become a reality for the Jets.
Despite all the challenges the Jets have endured this season, for them to reach the pinnacle, they’ll surely have to overcome a number of additional obstacles.
“It’s a good idea because I’m a hockey fan and I’m going nuts,” said Winnipeg coach Paul Maurice, when asked why it’s a good idea for hockey to return in the middle of a pandemic. “It’s in the middle of July and we get to see the playoffs. I want to see it. I think it’s a good idea because we have a responsibility also first to our health, I get that, but also we’re entertainers, right? So this is prime time. People want to watch hockey. They want to see it. That’s our job and we have a responsibility to do our job.
“There’s so many things you don’t know. If you can go in with a positive frame of mind, if you can go in and look at this as a challenge that’s exciting, have a little fun with this, get a little wired up for it, it could be a great thing. I don’t even know what those hardships are yet, to be honest with you. I know they’re coming, but I haven’t seen it yet. All of the difficulties that you’re going to have to win the Stanley Cup this year will be the best part of the memories.”
EDMONTON – The Edmonton Oilers signed defenceman Travis Dermott to a professional tryout on Friday.
Dermott, a 27-year-old from Newmarket, Ont., produced two goals, five assists and 26 penalty minutes in 50 games with the Arizona Coyotes last season.
The six-foot, 202-pound blueliner has also played for the Vancouver Canucks and Toronto Maple Leafs.
Toronto drafted him in the second round, 34th overall, of the 2015 NHL draft.
Over seven NHL seasons, Dermott has 16 goals and 46 assists in 329 games while averaging 16:03 in ice time.
Before the NHL, Dermott played two seasons with Oilers captain Connor McDavid for the Ontario Hockey League’s Erie Otters. The team was coached by current Edmonton head coach Kris Knoblauch.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
NEWPORT, R.I. (AP) — Maria Sharapova, a five-time Grand Slam singles champion, led the International Tennis Hall of Fame’s fan vote her first year on the ballot — an important part to possible selection to the hall’s next class.
The organization released the voting results on Friday. American doubles team Bob and Mike Bryan finished second with Canada’s Daniel Nestor third.
The Hall of Fame said tens of thousands of fans from 120 countries cast ballots. Fan voting is one of two steps in the hall’s selection process. The second is an official group of journalists, historians, and Hall of Famers from the sport who vote on the ballot for the hall’s class of 2025.
“I am incredibly grateful to the fans all around the world who supported me during the International Tennis Hall of Fame’s fan votes,” Sharapova said in a statement. “It is a tremendous honor to be considered for the Hall of Fame, and having the fans’ support makes it all the more special.”
Sharapova became the first Russian woman to reach No. 1 in the world. She won Wimbledon in 2004, the U.S. Open in 2006 and the Australian Open in 2008. She also won the French Open twice, in 2012 and 2014.
Sharapova was also part of Russia’s championship Fed Cup team in 2008 and won a silver medal at the London Olympics in 2012.
To make the hall, candidates must receive 75% or higher on combined results of the official voting group and additional percentage from the fan vote. Sharapova will have an additional three percentage points from winning the fan vote.
The Bryans, who won 16 Grand Slam doubles titles, will have two additional percentage points and Nestor, who won eight Grand Slam doubles titles, will get one extra percentage point.
The hall’s next class will be announced late next month.
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — The driver charged with killing NHL hockey player Johnny Gaudreau and his brother Matthew as they bicycled on a rural road had a blood-alcohol level of .087, above the .08 legal limit in New Jersey, a prosecutor said Friday.
Gaudreau, 31, and brother Matthew, 29, were killed in Carneys Point, New Jersey, on Aug. 29, the evening before they were set to serve as groomsmen at their sister Katie’s wedding.
The driver, 43-year-old Sean M. Higgins of nearby Woodstown, New Jersey, is charged with two counts of death by auto, along with reckless driving, possession of an open container and consuming alcohol in a motor vehicle. At a virtual court hearing Friday, a judge ordered that he be held for trial after prosecutors described a history of alleged road rage and aggressive driving.
“’You were probably driving like a nut like I always tell you you do. And you don’t listen to me, instead you just yell at me,’” his wife told Higgins when he called her from jail after his arrest, according to First Assistant Prosecutor Jonathan Flynn of Salem County.
The defense described Higgins as a married father and law-abiding citizen before the crash.
“He’s an empathetic individual and he’s a loving father of two daughters,” said defense lawyer Matthew Portella. “He’s a good person and he made a horrible decision that night.”
Higgins told police he had five or six beers that day and admitted to consuming alcohol while driving, according to the criminal complaint. He also failed a field sobriety test, the complaint said. A prosecutor on Friday said he had been drinking at home after finishing a work call at about 3 p.m., and having an upsetting conversation with his mother about a family matter.
He then had a two-hour phone call with a friend while he drove around in his Jeep with an open container, Flynn said. He had been driving aggressively behind a sedan going just above the 50 mph speed limit, sometimes tailgating, the female driver told police.
When she and the vehicle ahead of her slowed down and veered left to go around the cyclists, Higgins sped up and veered right, striking the Gaudreas, the two other drivers told police.
“He indicated he didn’t even see them,” said Superior Court Judge Michael J. Silvanio, who said Higgins’ admitted “impatience” caused two deaths.
Higgins faces up to 20 years, a sentence that the judge said made him a flight risk.
Higgins has a master’s degree, works in finance for an addiction treatment company, and served in combat in Iraq, his lawyers said. However, his wife said he had been drinking regularly since working from home, Flynn said.
Johnny Gaudreau, known as “Johnny Hockey,” played 10 full seasons in the league and was set to enter his third with the Columbus Blue Jackets after signing a seven-year, $68 million deal in 2022. He played his first eight seasons with the Calgary Flames, a tenure that included becoming one of the sport’s top players and a fan favorite across North America.
Widows Meredith and Madeline Gaudreau described their husbands as attached at the hip throughout their lives. Both women are expecting, and both gave moving eulogies at the double funeral on Monday.
