Blackhawks legend, NHL Hall of Famer Stan Mikita dies
Stan Mikita, the hockey great who helped the Chicago Blackhawks to the 1961 Stanley Cup title while becoming one of the franchise’s most revered figures, died Tuesday. He was 78.
Mikita’s family announced his death in a statement released by the team. No further details were provided, but the Hall of Famer had been in poor health after being diagnosed with a brain disorder called Lewy body dementia.
“He was surrounded by his loving family whom he fiercely loved,” the family said in the statement.
Mikita spent his entire career with Chicago, beginning with his NHL debut in 1959 and running through his retirement after playing 17 games in the 1979-80 season. He is the franchise’s career leader for assists (926), points (1,467) and games played (1,394), and is second to former teammate Bobby Hull with 541 goals.
Mikita remains the only NHL player in history to win the Art Ross (scoring champion), Hart (MVP) and Lady Byng (sportsmanship) trophies in the same season, and he accomplished the feat in consecutive years in 1967 and 1968. He became the first player to have his jersey retired by the Blackhawks in 1980, and was inducted into the Hall of Fame three years later.
NHL commissioner Gary Bettman called Mikita “one of the greatest players in NHL history and a Chicago icon.”
Golf
LI LEADS AMATEUR FIELD INTO MATCH PLAY >> Redwood Shores teenager Lucy Li (68-65) shared medalist honors at the U.S. Women’s Amateur at The Golf Club of Tennessee in Kingston Springs. Li and Korean Selin Hyun topped the field with two-day scores of 9-under 133, matching the Women’s Amateur scoring record. Li, 15, and Hyun, 17, lead the field of the low 64 into match play today. It takes six matches to win the title.
Danville’s Ty Akabane (140), Concord’s Yealimi Noh (142) and San Jose’s Megan Yang (144) were other Bay Area players to make the match play field, along with Stanford’s Albane Valenzuela (143). Yoonhee Kim of San Ramon is in a playoff for one of the final spots.
NFL
LUCK TO PLAY A QUARTER IN EXHIBITION >> Indianapolis Colts coach Frank Reich says Andrew Luck will start and is expected to play about a quarter in Thursday night’s preseason opener at Seattle. Luck has not played in more than 19 months while recovering from surgery on his throwing shoulder in January 2017. He says he’s nervous but excited about returning.
Reich wants to see the top overall pick from the 2012 draft establish a rhythm and release the ball quickly. He did not say how many snaps Luck would take. BROWNS’ ROOKIE CITED FOR MARIJUANA POSSESSION >> Browns rookie Antonio Callaway was cited for possession of marijuana and driving with a suspended license the same day the team effectively promoted him into the starting lineup by trading fellow wide receiver Corey Coleman. In an incident report, Strongsville, Ohio, police officer Eric Schubert wrote he stopped Callaway early Sunday morning for failing to yield to oncoming traffic. Schubert wrote he found Callaway’s driver’s license to be suspended and a small amount of marijuana under the driver’s seat. CAROLINA LOSES LINEMAN >> Panthers offensive lineman Amini Silatolu has a torn meniscus in his left knee and will undergo surgery Friday. The team isn’t saying how much time Silatolu, the team’s starting left guard, is expected to miss. BOSA LEAVES PRACTICE >> Chargers defensive end Joey Bosa left practice early because of a left foot injury. Head coach Anthony Lynn did not speak to reporters following practice, but Bosa was not expected to play in the team’s preseason opener at Arizona on Saturday. EAGLES SHORT ON QUARTERBACKS >> Nick Foles has missed three straight practices because of muscle spasms near his shoulder and neck, and Carson Wentz still isn’t participating in 11on-11 drills for the Philadelphia Eagles. Third-stringer Nate Sudfeld will likely get most of the snaps against the Steelers in Thursday’s exhibition. SMITH BATTLED DEPRESSION >> Former NFL wide receiver Steve Smith Sr. says he battled depression during his 16-year career with the Carolina Panthers and Baltimore Ravens. Smith, who retired after the 2016 season and now works as an analyst for the NFL Network, told NFL. com that despite making five Pro Bowls and being selected All-Pro twice he “routinely felt trapped, inferior and alone” and often asked himself “what’s wrong with me?”
Tennis
SHARAPOVA ADVANCES >> Maria Sharapova advanced to the second round of the Rogers Cup with a 6-1, 6-2 victory over qualifier Sesil Karatantcheva of Bulgaria in Montreal. Canada’s Eugenie Bouchard is out after a 6-2, 6-4 first-round loss to Elise Mertens of Belgium. DJOKOVIC ROLLS >> Novak Djokovic advanced to the second round with a 6-3, 7-6 (7) win over lucky loser Mirza Basic at the Rogers Cup in Toronto. And former world No. 3 Stan Wawrinka came back to beat 16th-seed Nick Kyrgios 1-6, 7-5, 7-5.
WNBA
LEAGUE RULES ACES FORFEIT MISSED GAME >> The WNBA ruled that Las Vegas will get a loss for skipping its game against Washington the Aces players decided not to play because of concerns about their health and safety after 26 hours of travel. The Aces needed more than a day to get to Washington from Las Vegas because of flight delays and cancellations Friday. By the time the team reached its hotel it was 3:45 p.m. about four hours before the scheduled tip. The Aces players talked things over and spoke by phone with the union Friday. They called the league to say they did not want to play.
Soccer
CARDINAL TOP MEN’S AND WOMEN’S POLLS >> Stanford’s defending NCAA champion men’s and women’s teams are both No. 1 in the United Soccer Coaches preseason poll. Santa Clara opens the season at No. 19 in the women’s poll.
Cal’s men’s and women’s teams both just missed the Top 25, each receiving the most votes of the teams that open the season unranked. The Cardinal men, the three-time defending NCAA champs, were followed in the top five by No. 2 Indiana, No. 3 North Carolina, No. 4 Akron and No. 5 Wake Forest.
In the women’s poll, Stanford is followed by UCLA, Duke, Penn State and South Carolina.
QUAKES’ VAKO HONORED >> Earthquakes midfielder Vako was voted the MLS Player of the Week after he scored twice in an upset win at FC Dallas.
College basketball
MICHIGAN’S BEILEIN HAS DOUBLE BYPASS >> Michigan basketball coach John Beilein underwent a doublebypass heart procedure and is expected to make a full recover, the school said. The 65-year-old Beilein won’t go on the team’s trip to Spain from Aug. 17-26. Assistant Saddi Washington will serve as interim coach during Beilein’s recovery.