Wild trade for Tarasenko, Islanders extend Romanov on eve of NHL free agency
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The Wild acquired winger Vladimir Tarasenko from the Detroit Red Wings on Monday for future considerations.
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The Islanders re-signed defenceman Alexander Romanov to an eight-year contract that a person with knowledge of the extension said is worth $50 million.
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The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because terms were not disclosed. Romanov will count $6.25 million against the salary cap through the 2032-33 season.
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Tarasenko, 33, has one year left on his contract at a salary cap hit of $4.75 million.
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He helped Florida win the Cup last year after being a key part of St. Louis' championship run in 2019.
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The Utah Mammoth also traded young forward Matias Maccelli to Toronto for a conditional 2027 third-round pick. It turns into a second-rounder in 2029 if Maccelli has 51-plus points and the Maple Leafs make the playoffs next season.
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'We appreciate everything that Matias has done for the organization,' Utah general manager Bill Armstrong said. 'He is a great person, consummate professional, and we wish him all the best.'
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The moves came with the league awaiting what happens with the Leafs' pending free-agent Mitch Marner and who the back-to-back defending champion Panthers are able to bring back between Brad Marchand and Aaron Ekblad. They already re-signed Conn Smythe Trophy winner Sam Bennett to an eight-year, $64-million contract.
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CBC
an hour ago
- CBC
New Steve Prefontaine biography reveals man behind mythic distance runner
Social Sharing The late American distance runner Steve Prefontaine never won an Olympic medal, a world championship, or even held a world record. Yet, half a century after his untimely death in a car wreck at the age of 24, "Pre," as he came to be known, remains an iconic, almost saint-like figure, of track and field. Many would argue that Prefontaine is regarded as the most charismatic runner of all-time, often credited with igniting the worldwide running boom of the 1970's, not to mention being the first face of the multi-billion dollar Nike brand of athletic gear. In a new biography, "The Front Runner - The Life of Steve Prefontaine," author Brendan O'Meara re-examines his legacy on the cusp of the 50th anniversary of the international athletics gathering that bears his name. This year's "Pre Classic" at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore., will feature more than 20 Olympic gold medallists and countless world champions. It is one of, if not the most, star-studded fields in the history of professional track and field outside an Olympic Games. O'Meara suggests that, in many ways, the annual pilgrimage of these outstanding, runners, jumpers, and throwers from every corner of the world, to a small, university city in the Pacific Northwest of the United States, is one of Prefontaine's greatest contributions to the sport. A local hero from the coastal logging town of Coos Bay, Prefontaine once held every American record from 2,000 to 10,000 metres. And he set many of those records and won most of his important races at the University of Oregon's fabled track at Hayward Field. He was idolized as a child prodigy from a rough and tumble background who was outspoken and had the audacity to take on the best in the world while defying them to race flat out instead of languishing in the rear and concocting last-minute, or contrived, victories. He was, as O'Meara explains, the quintessential front runner from an athletic perspective. In the biggest race Prefontaine ever took on, the Olympic 5,000m final at the 1972 Munich Games, he was by far the smallest and youngest contestant in the field. And yet, the confident and brash American was undaunted, leading into the final lap while duelling magnificently with the likes of the statuesque Finn, Lasse Viren, who eventually won the gold medal, and 1968 Olympic champion Mohammed Gammoudi of Tunisia who claimed silver. Prefontaine, totally spent, ran out of gas over the last few metres and was narrowly beaten for the bronze medal by Great Britain's hard charging Ian Stewart. Distraught, Prefontaine bowed his head, removed his spikes, and walked barefoot off the track in front of the astonished fans in the jam-packed stadium. For many people of a certain generation, it was a vivid and lasting first recollection of the crucible of Olympic competition. 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Moreover, Prefontaine is portrayed as less of a philosopher king and more likely driven by a simpler set of principles — he wanted to run hard and fast and compete against the best in the world on his own terms, not to mention his home turf. WATCH | Oregon's iconic Hayward Field: Oregon's iconic Hayward Field home of the 2022 World Athletics Championships 3 years ago Duration 10:54 There are also stories of Prefontaine being a practical joker, a wild and crazy driver of sports cars, and a prodigious guzzler of beer. The way O'Meara tells it, Prefontaine revelled in the attention of his fans, but he might have foregone future fame and fortune for a more modest life, which included owning and operating his dream bar called "The Sub Four," in reference to his achievement of running a sub four-minute mile. 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CTV News
an hour ago
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U.S. college bans transgender athletes following swimming furor
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Global News
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