Walsh to leave Biden post for NHL union
WASHINGTON — U.S. Labor Secretary Marty Walsh is expected to leave the Biden administration to run the National Hockey League Players’ Association, according to two people familiar with his plans.
The hockey players’ union has been searching for a new executive director to take over for Donald Fehr, who had been in charge for more than a decade. An association spokesperson had no official update on the situation when reached on Tuesday.
A serious fan of the Boston Bruins, Walsh showed an encyclopedic knowledge of the sport in videos posted online during his tenure from 2014 to 2021 as mayor of Boston.
As labor secretary, Walsh helped broker a temporary work agreement between major freight railroads and their unions, preventing the risk of a strike that could have disrupted the U.S. economy ahead of the 2022 midterm elections. Congress later imposed a contract on the unions after workers failed to ratify the agreement.
An administration official said that Walsh was expected to leave his post after President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address, as did a second person familiar with Walsh’s plans, who stressed that the plan was not yet final. Both people spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss departure plans.
Sabres: Buffalo agreed to terms with forward Dylan Cozens on a seven-year extension worth $49.7 million. Cozens will count $7.1 million against the salary cap through the 2029-30 season. Cozens, who was set to be a restricted free agent, has already set career highs with 17 goals, 26 assists and 43 points — with 30 games left in the season.