Sports
Blackhawks' Connor Bedard out 4 months after shoulder surgery
Apr 13, 2026; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Blackhawks center Connor Bedard (98) looks to pass the puck against the Buffalo Sabres during the first period at United Center. Mandatory Credit: Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images Chicago Blackhawks star forward Connor Bedard is expected to recover in four months after undergoing surgery to repair his left shoulder, the team announced Wednesday.
Based on the team-provided timeline, Bedard would miss over one month of the 2026-27 regular season.
Bedard, who will turn 21 on July 17, was injured after tumbling into the boards during an offseason on-ice workout last Thursday.
He recorded career-high totals in goals (30), assists (45) and points (75), with the latter two serving as team bests. He missed 12 games in 2025-26 — not suiting up the entire month of January — as a result to an injury to his right shoulder.
Bedard won the 2024 Calder Trophy as the NHL’s top rookie after totaling 61 points (22 goals, 39 assists) in 68 games. He has 203 points (75 goals, 128 assists) in 219 career games since being selected by the Blackhawks with the top overall pick in the 2023 NHL Draft.
The Blackhawks are expected to begin the regular season in September with the new 84-game schedule to be released later this month. Their first preseason game is Sept. 19 against Minnesota with the new four-game regional-based format also sending the Blackhawks to St. Louis (Sept. 24) and hosting the Blues on Sept. 26.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Alexander Zverev to face Jannik Sinner in Wimbledon final
Alexander Zverev defeated hometown wild card Arthur Fery to advance to the Wimbledon men’s final. Second-seeded Alexander Zverev put an end to the “Fery-tale” run of a British wild card on Friday and punched his ticket to the Wimbledon final for the first time, where he’ll face defending champ Jannik Sinner, who knocked out seven-time champion Novak Djokovic.
Zverev recorded a 7-6 (0), 6-2, 6-4 victory over Arthur Fery in 2 hours, 14 minutes to advance to Sunday’s final at the All England Club in London.
“It’s amazing. This is the one that I’ve always struggled with the most. Now I’m in the final at Wimbledon,” Zverev said.
No. 1 seed Sinner, meanwhile, defeated Djokovic in straight sets in the semifinals for the second straight year at Wimbledon, this time notching a 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 win.
However, Sinner may have been thinking more about his most recent matchup against Djokovic, a five-set loss in the Australian Open semis in January, as the Italian dominated the 24-time major winner in two hours and 20 minutes to leave no questions this time.
“We always have very tough matches, and the last one he won in the semis in Australia,” Sinner said of his rivalry with Djokovic. The pair are 2-2 at Wimbledon but Sinner has won six of the seven most recent matchups to lead 7-5 overall against the Serbian.
“So I tried to make a couple of adjustments, even though here on grass it is very difficult,” Sinner said. “I tried to stay quite aggressive, serving very well which helped me a lot today. He’s probably the best returner we have in our game, so I tried to mix it up.”
Sinner won 88 percent (45/51) of points behind his first serve, knocked down 16 aces, and saved the only break point he faced against Djokovic.
Zverev, 29, notched his second straight major final appearance. The German won his first Grand Slam title at the French Open last month with a five-set victory over Italy’s Flavio Cobolli in Paris.
Should Zverev win Sunday, he will become just the seventh man in the Open Era to win the Roland Garros-Wimbledon double in the same year. Rod Laver, Bjorn Borg, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz also accomplished that feat.
“It’s not gonna be easy no matter who it is against,” Zverev said after his win, which was completed before the Sinner-Djokovic match. “But I have to trust myself and believe I can win. That’s what I’m gonna do.”
Fery, who was ranked 114th in the world, was the second wild card to reach a Wimbledon semifinal after 2001 titlist Goran Ivanisevic. Fery, whose 24th birthday is on Sunday, grew up less than a mile from the All England Club.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Flight delay: Red Sox stuck in Chicago ahead of game in New York
Apr 29, 2021; Arlington, Texas, USA; A view of the Boston Red Sox logo and a field bag during batting practice before the game between the Texas Rangers and the Boston Red Sox at Globe Life Field. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images Players on the Boston Red Sox are being reminded of their travel ball days as they deal with flight delays, with an expected arrival in New York on Friday just ahead of game time.
The Red Sox have experienced a multiple flight issues over two separate days and remained grounded at Chicago’s Midway Airport ahead of a scheduled 7:15 p.m. start against the New York Mets.
As of 2 p.m. ET, Friday’s game time was unchanged.
The Red Sox’s original flight was scheduled to leave Chicago on Thursday at 8:45 p.m. local time following a 2-1 afternoon victory over the White Sox.
The current flight plan has the team arriving at New York’s LaGuardia Airport around 4:10 p.m. ET. The airport is only 3 miles from the Mets’ home ballpark.
Most players arrive at the ballpark for road games around four or five hours before first pitch.
Boston finished off a three-game sweep of the Chicago White Sox on Thursday afternoon. They have won a season-high six consecutive games and 11 of their last 13.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Report: FIFA could make $11 million from pieces of World Cup final turf
People carry “FIFA” letters on to the field before a 2026 FIFA World Cup round of 32 match between France and Sweden at New York New Jersey Stadium on Tuesday, June 30, 2026, in East Rutherford, NJ. The field that will be used for the World Cup final later this month is about to fetch some serious green.
According to The Athletic, FIFA will sell four different tiers of souvenir turf that will be harvested after the world’s most-watched sporting event concludes July 19 at East Rutherford, N.J.
The sale, which is only available for customers in the United States and Europe, is expected to generate over $11 million.
In addition to the high-priced tickets and memorabilia for the tournament, it will cost $3,000 for the highest priced tier of souvenir turf. The 3-inch by 3-inch portion of grass will include a gold-etched replica ticket, a replica mini World Cup ball and a crystal-cut World Cup trophy.
The three other tiers of souvenir turf will sell for $450, $900 and $1,200.
There will be no more than 2,026 pieces available in any one tier.
The report indicated that the turf which will be used for the World Cup final was grown at a turf farm in North Carolina.
For consistency, new turf fields were installed at all World Cup venues, including those that typically have artificial surfaces like the stadiums in Seattle, Atlanta, East Rutherford, Vancouver, Canada, Arlington, Texas, and Inglewood, Calif.
There is no indication of what will happen to the turf fields that are not being used for the final.
The 2026 World Cup consisted of a record 48 teams that will end up playing 104 matches in three countries. A total of 16 venues are being used for the tournament.
–Field Level Media
