Sport

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Less than an hour remained before the puck was dropped for the inaugural Outdoor Women’s Classic between the Boston Pride of the National Women’s Hockey League and Les Canadiennes de Montreal of the Canadian Women’s Hockey League, and NWHL Commissioner Dani Rylan was beaming. Rylan’s league and her sport were about to take center stage on the eve of the NHL’s signature regular-season event, the 2016…

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Less than an hour remained before the puck was dropped for the inaugural Outdoor Women’s Classic between the Boston Pride of the National Women’s Hockey League and Les Canadiennes de Montreal of the Canadian Women’s Hockey League, and NWHL Commissioner Dani Rylan was beaming. Rylan’s league and her sport were about to take center stage on the eve of the NHL’s signature regular-season event, the 2016…

NASCAR legend Marvin Panch passed away Thursday at the age of 89. Panch was found unresponsive in his car Thursday morning and was pronounced dead from natural causes shortly thereafter, the Daytona Beach News-Journal reported. Most well known for his 1961 Daytona 500 victory driving for Smokey Yunick, Panch — nicknamed “Pancho” — collected 17 victories in his 15 years of premier series racing. Driving for Wood Brothers Racing from 1962-66, Panch also…

On this, the final day of 2015, we remember some friends and family from the NASCAR community whom we lost in 2015. Judy Allison — The wife of NASCAR Hall of Fame driver Bobby Allison for 55 years, Judy died in December following complications from surgery at Iredell Memorial Hospital in Statesville, North Carolina. She was loved and respected by the NASCAR community for her courage and compassion. Buddy Baker…

BOSTON (CBS) — The bulk of Bill Belichick’s playing experience came in football and lacrosse, but he dabbled in hockey too. Between skating at Phillips Academy in Andover and his “Huff & Puff” league with a bunch of 30-to-40-year-olds in New Jersey, Belichick has strapped on the skates many times in his life. He just didn’t have time to seriously commit the ice. “I wish I could have played hockey….

Since the NHL first experimented with outdoor games more than a decade ago, the Winter Classic has grown into a festival of fresh air hockey that this year included for the first time a professional women’s game. As part of the buildup to the New Year’s Day game between the archrival Bruins and Canadiens, the Boston Pride played the Montreal Canadiennes at the home of the defending Super Bowl champion…

For a list of all the latest deals, check out the transfers page. Red Star Belgrade midfielder Marko Grujic, 19, will become Jurgen Klopp’s first signing at Liverpool, after he was granted a work permit. (Daily Star) Former Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho, 52, has told Real Madrid president Florentino Perez he has no interest in returning to manage the Spanish club.(Diario Sport via Independent) The Daily Star leads its back…

Could 2015 be the turning point for women’s soccer in America? That will depend on what happens next year and beyond, but here’s what we do know: 2015 was perhaps the best year to date and could signal better times to come. Such optimism may seem incongruous with some of the biggest headlines of the year, such as the highly publicized turf battle and its accusations of gender discrimination. But…

Getty Images The peeved parents of a youth soccer league in Santa Clara are seeking legal action after losing soccer fields for the next two months due to Super Bowl 50 at Levi’s Stadium. According to Ramona Giwargis of the San Jose Mercury News, the Santa Clara Youth Soccer League filed a suit on Wednesday in hopes of stopping the NFL from taking over soccer fields adjacent to the stadium….

For a list of all the latest deals, check out the transfers page. Manchester United are closing in on a £35m deal for Lazio’s Brazil international midfielder Felipe Anderson, 22. (The Sun) The Daily Mirror back page Arsenal and Liverpool will have to wait until the summer if they want to sign Paris St-Germain winger Ezequiel Lavezzi as the 30-year-old is unlikely to leave the French champions in January.(Radio CRC…

For a list of all the latest deals, check out the transfers page. Valencia coach Gary Neville, 40, says he is committed to the club and will not be England or Manchester United manager in six months’ time. (Daily Telegraph) The Daily Mirror back page Arsenal and Liverpool will have to wait until the summer if they want to sign Paris St-Germain winger Ezequiel Lavezzi as the 30-year-old is unlikely…

SANTA CLARA — Just days before the city would hand over its soccer park for Super Bowl 50, a youth sports league filed suit Wednesday to stop the NFL from turning the fields next to Levi’s Stadium into a media camp and displacing 1,500 kids — the latest blow in the city’s high-profile feud between futbol and football. “We’re not trying to ruin the Super Bowl,” said Gautam Dutta, a…

Sporting associations in Victoria will lose funding unless 40% of their board positions are filled by women, in a proposal being considered by the state government. If adopted, the proposal could have implications for government support for major sporting events if associations like Football Federation Australia, which oversees both A-League and Socceroos matches, do not appoint additional female directors. Related: Women guaranteed at least 50% of jobs on Victorian government…

Our good friend Isaac Newton once explained that an object in motion will stay in motion until something makes it change its speed or route. We’re paraphrasing here, but the idea is clear; objects don’t just shift directions without something happening to them — without something moving them this way or that, stopping them in their tracks or giving them a little added momentum. But don’t tell that to the…

Buy Photo High school ice hockey officials are cracking down on the unnecessary contact.(Photo: The Journal News)Buy Photo Over the last two seasons, the rule book in play for high school ice hockey has been carefully altered to reduce needless contact. Guess what? Demanding accountability from the players along the boards has not destroyed the game. Taking out those hits from behind that make hockey moms cringe has not spoiled…

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Buy Photo High school ice hockey officials are cracking down on the unnecessary contact.(Photo: The Journal News)Buy Photo Over the last two seasons, the rule book in play for high school ice hockey has been carefully altered to reduce needless contact. Guess what? Demanding accountability from the players along the boards has not destroyed the game. Taking out those hits from behind that make hockey moms cringe has not spoiled…

SANTA CLARA — Just days before the city would hand over its soccer park for Super Bowl 50, a youth sports league filed suit Wednesday to stop the NFL from turning the fields next to Levi’s Stadium into a media camp and displacing 1,500 kids — the latest blow in the city’s high-profile feud between futbol and football. “We’re not trying to ruin the Super Bowl,” said Gautam Dutta, a…

The Minnesota Wild got a first taste of outdoor hockey Tuesday, holding practice outside at a rink in Edina, Minn. The Wild will face the Chicago Blackhawks on Feb. 21 in the 2016 Coors Light NHL Stadium Series at TCF Bank Stadium in Minneapolis. About 1,000 fans watched practice through a light snowfall on a 20-degree day. “That was fun. It was a neat atmosphere,” defenseman Ryan…

View gallery . As you know, Puck Daddy has been running top 10 lists that chronicle anything and everything in the world of hockey in 2015.  But some things can’t be categorized. Or, in some cases, there are multiple candidates for year-end awards. Thus, we bring you the Alternative Year in Hockey Awards. You can check out 2014’s here. We begin, as we always do, with the REAL team of…