CHICAGO (AP) β The Stanley Cup finals are tied at two games apiece after Brandon Saad (sahd) scored the tiebreaking goal with 13:38 remaining in the Blackhawks’ 2-1 victory over Tampa Bay in Chicago. Jonathan Toews (tayvz) scored the opening goal and Corey Crawford turned back 24 shots as the Hawks ended a two-game losing streak. Lightning netminder Andrei Vasilevskiy (vah-sih-LEHF’-skee) stopped 17 shots in place of Ben Bishop, who is day to day with an undisclosed injury.
GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) β The Glendale City Council has put the future of the Arizona Coyotes in doubt by voting 5-2 to end the team’s 15-year, $225 million lease agreement signed by the city and Ice Arizona in 2013. The city of Glendale issued a statement before the meeting that it would be open to renegotiating the arena deal, a proposal the Coyotes flatly refused. A state statute allows an agency to cancel a contract if an employee directly involved with the agreement becomes an employee or agent to the other party, something Craig Tindall did when he resigned as city attorney to become the Coyotes’ general counsel in 2013.
CLEVELAND (AP) β Cleveland Cavaliers guard Matthew Dellavedova says he expects to play in Game 4 of the NBA Finals tonight against Golden State. Dellavedova was hospitalized Wednesday morning with dehydration after scoring 20 point and playing 38 minutes in the Cavs’ 96-91 victory over the Warriors on Tuesday. Golden State forward Draymond Green is battling back spasms but is expected to play in Game 4 of the NBA Finals.
TORONTO (AP) β The Toronto Blue Jays have the longest current winning streak in the majors, making it eight straight by hitting four homers in a 7-2 decision over Miami yesterday afternoon. Justin Smoak and Russell Martin hit consecutive homers in the fourth, three innings before Jose Reyes and Josh Donaldson delivered back-to-back blasts. Scott Copeland won his first major league start by holding the Marlins to one run and six hits over seven innings.
SAMARA, Russia (AP) β FIFA (FEE’-fuh) has suspended the 2026 World Cup bidding process amid a widening corruption scandal implicating previous bid contests. FIFA planned to write to its 209 member federations this week to explain the bidding timetable and rules. The 2026 host is expected to be chosen by the 209 members at their May 2017 meeting in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
