Islanders great Bossy, 4-time champ, dies at 65
Mike Bossy flopped to the ice as the puck went in, then scrambled to his feet and leaped into the air to celebrate scoring another goal. It was a familiar sight as the New York Islanders were on their way to their third of four consecutive Stanley Cup titles.
Bossy danced on his skates the same way after his 50th goal in 50 games, but so many other times, his reaction was more muted simply because he scored so much and so often, more than almost anyone in the long history of the NHL.
The Hockey Hall of Famer died Thursday night of lung cancer. Bossy was 65.
“Though containing him was the obsession of opposing coaches and checking him the focus of opposing players, Bossy's brilliance was unstoppable and his production relentless throughout his entire career,” NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said Friday. “He thrilled fans like few others.”
An Islanders spokesman said Bossy was in his native Montreal, where the team will play Friday night against the Canadiens. Before taking the ice on an emotional night at Bell Centre, Islanders forward Anthony Beauvillier shared what Bossy meant to his family and career.
“Mike Bossy was a name often mentioned in my household growing up as my father idolized him,” Beauvillier wrote on Instagram. “He would tell stories about how good of a goal scorer he is and how he would make it so easy. When I first put the (Islanders) jersey on… it's the first thing my dad told me `Same team as Mike.' It's always been an honor for me wearing the same jersey as Mike.”
Bossy helped the Islanders win the Stanley Cup four straight years from 1980-83,
earning the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP in 1982. He scored the Cupwinning goal in 1982 and `83 — one of just two players to do so in back-to-back seasons.
“That's certainly something I'm proud of,” Bossy said in 1983 after scoring the second Cup-winning goal.
Bossy was a first-round pick in 1977 and played his entire 10-year NHL career with New York. He won the Calder Trophy as rookie of the year, got the Lady Byng Trophy for gentlemanly conduct three times and led the league in goals twice.
Golf
FEDEX CUP CHAMP CANTLAY TAKES RBC HERITAGE LEAD >>
FedEx Cup champion Patrick Cantlay birdied the final four holes for a 4-under 67 and take a two-stroke lead over Robert Streb halfway through the RBC Heritage.
After dropping back with bogeys on the 11th and 14th holes, Cantlay turned
it around on the most difficult stretch at Harbour Town Golf Links with the late birdie run in strong wind swirling off Calibogue Sound.
Cantlay had a 9-under 133 total.
Streb also had a 67. He appeared to be in position to take the lead into the weekend when he birdied No. 8 — his 17th hole of the day — to reach 7 under.
But Cantlay's accurate irons and hot putter moved him back on top. The run started with a 13-foot birdie putt on 15. He caught Streb a hole later with a 10-footer. Cantlay stuck his tee shot on the par-3 17th within 8 feet for his go-ahead birdie, then rolled in a 21-footer on the par-4 18th.
College basketball
TAR HEELS' BLACK OPTS TO RETURN FOR 5TH YEAR >> North Carolina wing Leaky Black is returning for a fifth year available due to the COVID-19 pandemic, providing another boost to the Tar Heels after
their improbable run to the NCAA championship game.
The 6-foot-8, 200-pound Black announced his decision to return Friday in a social-media video. The NCAA in October 2020 granted basketball and other winter-sports athletes in Division I an additional year of eligibility if they competed during the 2020-21 season.
Racing
MCLAREN PLANNING FOR FUTURE THAT INCLUDES PATO O'WARD >> Pato O'Ward controlled his career trajectory at the start of the IndyCar season. Win the championship, the thinking went, and perhaps earn the license he needs to eventually move to Formula One.
Instead, he went into the season-opening race upset over his contract with Arrow McLaren SP and it showed on the track. He was 12th at St. Petersburg. He returned to Texas as the defending race winner and finished 15th, while also hitting a crew member on pit road.