Wednesday Sports in Brief

NHL

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Nazem Kadri scored at 12:02 of overtime — — perhaps with too many Colorado players on the ice — and the Avalanche beat Tampa Bay 3-2 on Wednesday night in Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final to move within a victory of dethroning the two-time defending champion Lightning.

Playing for the first time since June 4 due to a thumb injury, Kadri skated in on Andrei Vasilevskiy and slipped a shot under the goaltender’s right arm to give Colorado a 3-1 series lead.

The Avalanche outshot the Lightning 11-3 in the extra period. Vasilevskiy stopped Logan O’Connor on a breakaway, and Colorado had a shot clang off the post and another hit the crossbar before Kadri ended it.

Without specifically saying Tampa Bay felt Colorado had too many men on the ice for the winning goal, Lightning coach Jon Cooper suggested the goal should not have been allowed.

Game 5 is Friday night in Denver, where Colorado won the first two games of the series and are 7-2 this postseason.

SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — Paul Maurice is the new coach of the Florida Panthers, agreeing on a deal Wednesday to take over a club coming off a season where it had the best record in the NHL and rewrote the franchise’s record book.

The 55-year-old Maurice will be introduced Thursday morning, the Panthers said.

Maurice will replace Panthers interim coach Andrew Brunette, who could remain with the organization if he chooses to do so.

The Panthers will become the fourth franchise that Maurice coaches. He started in Hartford in 1995, two seasons before that franchise relocated to Carolina. He coached Toronto for two seasons before returning to Carolina, then spent nearly nine years as coach in Winnipeg before stepping down there in December.

NFL

WASHINGTON (AP) — Washington Commanders owner Dan Snyder conducted a “shadow investigation” that sought to discredit former employees making accusations of workplace sexual harassment, hired private investigators to intimidate witnesses, and used an overseas lawsuit as a pretext to obtain phone records and emails, according to a document released by a House committee on Wednesday.

The Committee on Oversight and Reform is investigating the Commanders’ workplace culture following accusations of pervasive sexual harassment by team executives of women employees. It released the memo ahead of a hearing Wednesday in Washington that featured testimony from NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, appearing remotely from New York.

Snyder was invited to testify but declined, citing overseas business commitments and concerns about due process. The committee chairwoman, Rep. Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y., announced during the hearing that she plans to issue a subpoena to compel a deposition from Snyder next week.

The 29-page memo alleges Snyder tried to discredit the people accusing him and other team executives of misconduct and also tried to influence an investigation of the team conducted for the NFL by attorney Beth Wilkinson’s firm.

NEW YORK (AP) — The NFL and six of its teams have filed for arbitration in the lawsuit that alleges they engaged in racial discrimination. If the league’s request is successful, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell would be the arbitrator.

The league and the teams filed papers late Tuesday with a judge presiding over a lawsuit that was filed by Brian Flores after he was fired in January as head coach of the Miami Dolphins. The NFL said employment agreements with teams signed by Flores and other coaches contain provisions that require the arbitration of all disputes.

Flores now works as an assistant coach for the Pittsburgh Steelers. Two other Black coaches in the league — Steve Wilks and Ray Horton — joined Flores’ lawsuit, in which he alleges that the league engages in racist hiring practices despite its claims to the contrary.

GOLF

CROMWELL, Conn. (AP) — Commissioner Jay Monahan says the PGA Tour can’t win an “arms race” against Saudi-funded LIV Golf when the weapon is money. His response Wednesday was to boost prize money in eight elite events and rely on loyalty and legacy among his players.

Monahan delivered another round of stinging criticism against Greg Norman and his rival league. The tour, however, appears to be trying to keep up.

Monahan said an increase in prize money was in the works from its latest media rights deal it signed in 2020, noting the threat of LIV Golf accelerated some of those plans. He announced a streamlined schedule — January to August starting in 2024 — with seven tournaments worth $20 million or more and fewer spots available for its postseason. The top 125 qualify for the FedEx Cup playoffs. Next year, only the top 70 will be eligible.

The fall would be for the players who finished outside the top 70 to secure cards for the following year, and to give them a chance to move into the top 50 — or try to stay there — to secure spots in some of the elite $20 million tournaments.

Also planned are three international events in the fall for only the top 50 in FedEx Cup points from the previous season.

ST. ANDREWS, Scotland (AP) — Players who have joined the new Saudi Arabia-funded league will still be allowed to compete at the British Open next month, organizers said on Wednesday.

The U.S. Open had allowed players who were banned by the PGA Tour for signing up to the LIV Golf series to play at last week’s tournament.

“Players who are exempt or have earned a place through qualifying for the 150th Open in accordance with the entry terms and conditions will be able to compete in the Championship at St. Andrews,” R&A chief executive Martin Slumbers said in a statement.

The world’s oldest major championship begins July 14.

NBA

A person with knowledge of the situation said the Detroit Pistons have agreed to trade Olympic gold medalist Jerami Grant to the Portland Trail Blazers, with the biggest part of the return being a first-round pick in 2025.

Detroit gets the No. 36 pick in the draft Thursday and what would have been Milwaukee’s first-round pick in 2025, according to the person who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because neither team had announced the agreement publicly.

ESPN first reported the trade agreement, along with the detail that the 2025 first-round pick is top-four protected.

Grant’s salary — nearly $21 million for next season — is virtually the exact amount as the trade exception that Portland created in February when it traded C.J. McCollum to New Orleans.

— By Basketball Writer Tim Reynolds.

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Fanatics founder Michael Rubin is selling his stake in the company that owns the Philadelphia 76ers and New Jersey Devils.

Rubin, worth an estimated $8 billion according to Forbes, said on social media posts he was “shifting from part-owner” of the teams run by Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment and “back to life-long fan.”

Rubin was part of the ownership group when it purchased the 76ers in 2011 for $290 million. But as Fanatics has grown, and expanded into sports betting, and other business ventures have taken off, Rubin decided it was time to sell his estimated 10% stake in HBSE.

INTERNATIONAL HOCKEY

OTTAWA, Ontario (AP) — Hockey Canada’s federal funding is being frozen in the wake of the national organization’s handling of an alleged sexual assault and out-of-court settlement.

Hockey Canada will only have funding restored once it discloses the recommendations it received from an independent law firm hired to investigate the alleged incident four years ago, Minster for Sport Pascale St-Onge said in a statement Wednesday.

Hockey Canada must also become signatories to the Office of the Integrity Commissioner, a new government agency with the power to independently investigate abuse complaints and sanction inappropriate behavior.

WESTMINSTER DOG SHOW

TARRYTOWN, N.Y. (AP) — A bloodhound named Trumpet won the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show on Wednesday night, besting six other finalists to snare U.S. dogdom’s most coveted best in show prize.

Trumpet beat a French bulldog, a German shepherd, a Maltese, an English setter, a Samoyed and a Lakeland terrier to take the trophy in the 146th Westminster.

Trumpet became the first bloodhound to win Westminster.

The competition drew more than 3,000 purebred dogs, ranging from affenpinschers to Yorkshire terriers. The goal is to crown the dog that most represents the ideal for its breed.

OBITUARY

Tony Siragusa, the charismatic defensive tackle who was part of one of the most celebrated defenses in NFL history with the Baltimore Ravens, died Wednesday. He was 55.

Siragusa’s broadcast agent, Jim Ornstein, confirmed the death. The cause of death was not immediately available.

Siragusa, known as “Goose,” played seven seasons with the Indianapolis Colts and five with the Ravens. Baltimore’s 2000 team won the Super Bowl behind a stout defense that included Siragusa, Ray Lewis and Sam Adams.

Siragusa was popular with fans because of his fun-loving attitude, which also helped him transition quickly to broadcasting after his playing career.

Siragusa came to Baltimore as a free agent in 1997 and teamed up with Adams to form an imposing defensive tackle tandem. He finished his career with 22 sacks.

BALTIMORE (AP) — Jaylon Ferguson, who set an FBS record for career sacks while at Louisiana Tech and then played the past three seasons in the NFL with the Baltimore Ravens, has died. He was 26.

Police said Wednesday the cause of death was still to be determined.

Ferguson, nicknamed “Sack Daddy,” was drafted by the Ravens in the third round in 2019 and played his whole pro career with them. He appeared in 38 games and had 4 1/2 sacks.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — O. Bruton Smith, who emerged from North Carolina farm country and parlayed his love of motorsports into a Hall of Fame career as one of the biggest track owners and most successful promoters in the history of auto racing, died Wednesday. He was 95.

His death was announced by Speedway Motorsports, which cited natural causes.

Smith became one of the giants in stock car racing. Speedway Motorsports, the company he founded, was the first motorsports company to trade on the New York Stock Exchange and it currently owns 11 facilities across the United States.

The tracks host NASCAR, IndyCar, NHRA and other series in Hampton, Georgia; Bristol, Tennessee; Concord, North Carolina; Loudon, New Hampshire; Sonoma, California; Fort Worth, Texas; Dover, Delaware; Nashville, Tennessee; North Wilkesboro, North Carolina; Sparta, Kentucky, and Las Vegas.

STOCKHOLM, Sweden (AP) — Jonny Nilsson, a Swedish speedskater who won the gold medal in the 10,000 meters at the Winter Olympics at Innsbruck in 1964, has died. He was 79.

Nilsson’s death was announced by his wife, Marianne, on Wednesday. She told Swedish news agency TT that he died during the night.

Nilsson had been suffering from prostate cancer and said last year his condition was getting worse.

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