BELLEVILLE, Ill. – Logan Seavey was a man on a mission entering Sunday night’s POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget League feature at Belle-Clair Speedway, and he accomplished the goal in style.

Seavey started from the outside pole and led all the way to capture his 12th POWRi win of the season at the fifth-mile, semi-banked dirt oval.

The Sutter, Calif., young gun was never seriously threatened during the 30-lap Charlene Meents Memorial, driving to a .885-second victory over polesitter Andrew Felker on a challenging surface.

“It feels good just to finish on a race track like that,” said Seavey in victory lane. “She was rough, and it makes it fun, but it makes it tough as a driver to maneuver around the race track and stay on all four wheels. It’s fun to get that every once in a while, though, and cowboy up a little bit. I’m sure it made a heck of a race to watch and it’s exciting for the fans.

“I tried to rip the top the whole race and it seemed like as the race went on, it got harder and harder to run up there,” Seavey added. “We had to move around in lap traffic, and my car was able to go everywhere. That’s just what you need to do to win these races.”

Seavey’s win broke the previous record of 11 triumphs in a single POWRi season, set by one of Seavey’s predecessors and mentors at Keith Kunz/Curb-Agajanian Motorsports – Christopher Bell.

It was fitting then, that on the same night Bell won with the World of Outlaws at Tri-State Speedway in Indiana, Seavey eclipsed Bell’s 2014 mark with the most impressive year-long run in POWRi history.

“That’s pretty cool,” said Seavey. “I always say that just to be racing midgets is a dream come true for me. To be out here with Keith Kunz Motorsports and put a season like this together is just a dream come true and it’s unbelievable.

“Hopefully we’ve got a lot more racing to go yet and hopefully we can just keep on winning.”

Only two cautions interrupted Seavey’s march to victory with the No. 67 Mobil 1 Bullet by Spike/Speedway Toyota. The first waved with six laps scored for the stalled car of Daniel Adler on the frontstretch, and the second came at halfway for Broc Hunnell, also stopped on the main straight.

On both of the ensuing restarts, Felker threw everything he could muster at Seavey, to no avail.

Seventeen-year-old Buddy Kofoid, in his second-career POWRi start, finished on the podium for the second night in a row with a third-place run behind Seavey and Felker.

TRD Hard Charger Cannon McIntosh rolled from 23rd to fourth after taking a provisional due to engine woes before the B-main, with Jesse Colwell extending his POWRi points lead by crossing the line fifth.

Colwell now leads Zach Daum, who came home ninth, by 50 points in the race for the season title.

To view complete race results, advance to the next page.

WHEATLAND, Mo. – USRA B-Mod National points leader Kris Jackson earned his 27th victory of the season and eighth at Lucas Oil Speedway on Sunday night during the B-Mod Clash of Champions II.

It was far from easy, especially with worry about a motor that was sputtering over the final dozen laps.

“I got to the lead and when I was passing a lapped car, something happened,” Jackson said of his motor. “It started popping and carrying on. It finally cleared out, but it’s got a dead-miss in it. I was just holding it on the floor the last 15 laps.

“I feel sorry for the motor, but I feel like we needed to win and here we are.”

Jackson, who earned $3,000, finished ahead of Andy Bryant, surviving a restart with six laps to go. Gunner Martin was third with J.C. Morton fourth and Ryan Gillmore fifth.

“I have to thank all the guys who work on the car. We have a lot of fun in the pits, despite all the stress,” Jackson said. “We come in, I feel, with a target on our back.”

Ryan Gillmore started on the front row and led the first eight laps before Jackson, who started fifth, made an inside pass for the lead coming to the finish of lap nine.

Jackson remained out front, as Gillmore and Bryant gave chase with the three separated by less than a second as the trio worked through slower traffic during the lengthy green-flag run.

Jackson was ahead of Bryant by one-half second with Gillmore right behind when the race’s first caution flew on lap 33 after Parker Hale spun in turn two.

One lap after the restart, another caution came out, this one for debris on the track. Jackson had opened up a five-car-length lead as Gillmore and Bryant battled side-by-side for second with Brian McGowen in fourth.

That set the stage for a six-lap shootout. Jackson was up to the task, riding the low side as Bryant tried to make up ground by taking to the high groove.

“Everything was going fine with no cautions, then that caution came out,” Jackson said. “I just knew it wasn’t going to take off right. Normally on a restart I’ll start it real slow because Jim (Ruble) builds such a good motor, I can take off from almost a dead stop.

“I decided since it wasn’t running right, I’d keep my momentum up on the restarts. I thought they’d be coming. I couldn’t help but look up at the (video board) a couple of times and noticed that they weren’t right on me. I just had to keep doing the same thing over and over.”

Jackson finished about six car lengths in front of Bryant with 10th-starting Gunner Martin moving into third on the final lap. JC Morton, who started 13th, advanced to fourth and Gillmore, slipping on the final circuit, wound up fifth.

“You have to give kudos to Kris,” Bryant said. “He ran a clean race and got to the bottom first and went off from there.”

The finish:

Kris Jackson, Andy Bryant, Gunner Martin, J.C. Morton, Ryan Gilmore, Brian McGowen, Jayden Larson, Dillon McCowan, Kyle Slader, Terry Schultz, Robbe Ewing, Tyler Tesch, Shaun Walski, Parker Hale, Luke Nieman, Brantlee Gotschall, Mike Striegel, Damien Vandenberg, Jerry Ellis, Jeremy Lile, Dylan Allen, Eric Turner, B.J. Deal, Gene Sisco.

WHEATLAND, Mo. – Tony Jackson Jr. earned redemption and Will Vaught got a championship on Sunday night as the sixth annual Lucas Oil MLRA Fall Nationals concluded at Lucas Oil Speedway.

Jackson bounced back from a poor first night of the doubleheader by leading all 40 laps to take the $3,000 winner’s check, finishing 4.3 seconds in front of runner-up Payton Looney.

Vaught, meanwhile, finished third and turned his 33rd birthday into a celebration of his first Lucas Oil MLRA championship.

Tony Jackson spun on lap one of the Saturday MLRA feature and wound up 18th. He made up for it by dominating the final race of the MLRA season and helping himself in the COMP Cams Super Dirt Series points, where he’s battling Timothy Culp for the championship. Two events remain in that series in 2019.

“We’ve had a good car ever since we unloaded and we broke a shock on the first lap last night,” Jackson said. “We just kind of had to stay out there for points, but (tonight) we had a really fast hot rod.”

Jackson set sail at the start from his front-row starting position and opened up a two-second leader over Looney in the early stages. That margin was wiped out by a lap-13 caution for a spinning Reid Millard after the top two had more than a three-second gap over third-place Merrill and fourth-place Gustin.

The trend that Jackson started continued after the restart. He pulled away as the race remained green over the final 27 laps, lapping more than half the field while maneuvering through slower traffic to finish about a straightaway in front of Looney.

“Sometimes that lapped traffic helps you and sometimes it hurts you,” said Jackson, who also earned a $750 bonus in the memory of Ron Jenkins, builder of the original Wheatland Raceway. “They had a really good pace tonight, so I wasn’t real anxious to get by them. It was a good.”

Vaught, who clinched the MLRA championship with a fourth-place run on Saturday, wound up third after starting 13th. He said it was nice to drive without worrying about points.

“Last night we missed the set-up. That and being conservative don’t ever go together,” Vaught said. “We got a decent finish last night and the car was a lot better tonight. We changed a lot of things on the car and work hard to get it a lot faster.

“We just needed a caution there at the end. We were about a half-second faster than everybody. That would have been a good victory, but that’s part of racing. We didn’t qualify well.”

Vaught said the first MLRA title was extra sweet after finishing as runner-up twice previously, including last year. His three children joined him atop the car in post-race festivities.

“This championship is pretty awesome,” Vaught said. “We’ve never been a points racer and these last couple of years it’s kind of fit our schedule with our kids playing sports and racing themselves. Eric (crew chief Eric Barnes) has worked really hard at the shop and a lot of this is for him.

“Just to be able to do it with my family is the biggest, most-important thing to me.”

Looney also enjoyed a strong bounce-back, a night after an early race multi-car crash left him upside and with a 24th-place finish. The crew worked late into Saturday night/Sunday morning getting the car repaired.

“It was a pretty late night, but we got it patched back up,” Looney said. “Fortunately it wasn’t tore up too bad. The race track was pretty good tonight. Hats off to them. It’s tough on track guys when you start during the day. They did what they could with what they had. Kudos to them.

“It was a really fun race. I kind of pulled up beside (Jackson) for a little bit and thought maybe we’d be able to race a little bit, but I just didn’t have anything for him. So congrats to him and a good run. Thanks to all the fans for coming.”

Ryan Gustin, who won Saturday’s feature, finished fourth and Culp was fifth with 2018 MLRA champ Chad Simpson in sixth.

The finish:

Tony Jackson Jr., Payton Looney, Will Vaught, Ryan Gustin, Timothy Culp, Chad Simpson, Mason Oberkramer, Raymond Merrill, Mitch McGrath, Logan Martin, Brent Larson, B.J. Robinson, Brian Rickman, Jason Papich, Hunter Rasdon, Morgan Bagley, Tyler Bruening, Colton Horner, Joseph Gorby, Terry Phillips, Jake Timm, Steve Drake, Reid Millard, Jeremy Grady.

HONOLULU, Hawaii — Plans have been revealed to build a new motorsports facility on the island of Oahu in Hawaii.

Michael Kitchens, CEO of BTT, LLC, has announced his  vision for the future of motorsports on Oahu – Circuit Hawaii. Kitchens is envisioning an FIA Grade 3 complex capable of supporting a wide variety of racing events, to include drag racing, road racing, drifting, karting, dirt racing and more.

In addition, several club membership packages will be offered by the Hawaii Driver’s Club for everyone from the enthusiasts looking for perks and privileges to those just looking to enjoy the thrill behind the wheel of an exotic sports car.

Also involved in the project is Ben Willshire from UK-based motorsports consultants Driven International, Ltd., with Coffman Engineers and HHF Planners also in support. Yoshi Development New York is responsible for architectural design.

Circuit Hawaii is being designed and developed by Driven. Driven is an award winning, RIBA chartered architectural, design and consultancy firm, with particular expertise in resort-based motorsport and driving venues.

The complex is expected to consist of an eighth-mile drag strip, a 1.5-mile licensed FIA road course and a quarter-mile dirt track. The facility is also expected to include a clubhouse, race control, pits, garages and event space.

The Circuit Hawaii complex will be located in the most appropriate area on Oahu for MotorSports –in Campbell Industrial Park directly to the west of Kalaeloa Airport and within a short six-mile drive to the Ko Olina vacation resort.

Circuit Hawaii is currently offering an initial Founding Membership package while it gathers further investment. The project is conservatively expected to be completed in three years, by 2022.

ST. LOUIS -- A few weeks before St. Louis Blues training camp, in what's become an annual tradition, Jordan Binnington sat down for lunch with his junior goalie coach Greg Redquest. Since "goaltender" and "superstitious" are synonymous in hockey, they went to the same chicken wing restaurant and sat in the same booth as they did a year ago.

Everything felt the same. But everything wasn't the same.

A year ago, Binnington was an AHL goalie buried on the Blues' depth chart, yearning for a chance to prove himself. That was before he got the call-up to St. Louis, and the 24-5-1 regular-season run that made him a finalist for NHL rookie of the year. That was before he hoisted the first Stanley Cup in franchise history, and before he took it back home to Richmond Hill, Ontario, where a parade was held in his honor and the mayor presented him with a key to the city in which he grew up.

That was before Jordan Binnington couldn't sit in a chicken wing restaurant without causing a scene.

"It was 2 p.m. in the afternoon and someone noticed him," Redquest recalled. "We didn't get out of there for two and a half hours. In a wing place that no one's ever in at that time of day. Autographs. Pictures."

But Redquest said superstition mandated that they eat at that restaurant, and repeat last year's meal -- right down to the check.

"We couldn't break protocol. Had to do the same thing. Which sucks, because I had to buy [lunch]. He's a rich kid now!" Redquest said, laughing.

Binnington, 26, signed a two-year contract worth $8.8 million after last season, after earning $650,000 while backstopping the Blues to the Stanley Cup. It was an interesting calculation on both sides of the bargaining table; it's hard to find comparable deals for a rookie goalie who dominates for 32 regular-season games and then wins 16 more in the playoffs. But Binnington likes how the math turned out.

"I think it's a fair deal for now. I'm going to continue to work and put myself in the best position come contract time," he said.

When Redquest saw the contract, he knew immediately why the money and the term were right for Binnington.

"I thought it was a great deal for both sides. If he proves himself even more, then he'll earn more," he said. "And that's Binner. [He'd say] 'I want the challenge. Challenge me, boys. I dare ya.'"

Blues GM Doug Armstrong said the best thing about negotiating Binnington's contract was that his agent, Mike Liut, was an NHL goalie for 663 games with the Blues, Whalers and Capitals.

"He knows the position and understands the nuance of the position. And Mike would inform me of things. In hockey, you think you know what's going on, but the goaltenders have their own little psyche. He walked me through some things that I wouldn't have known on my own," Armstrong told ESPN. "Mike understood that it was a great five months, but that we've seen a great five months in the past. Still, he said we have to reward him for the five months. And I believed that also."

Handing a goaltender a long-term contract for Stanley Cup success has happened before; see Jonathan Quick's 10-year deal with the Los Angeles Kings. Armstrong was disinclined to go there with Binnington.

"A one- or two-year deal was going to either create more questions, or eliminate all questions. And then we would know. We can make our long-term decisions," he said. "[His agent] understood our reluctance on going long term, based on that amount of work. But Mike also understood how appreciative we were and [that] we were willing to commit a few years to find out about him. To make sure he was paid for that. He brought us a championship. Maybe not single-handedly, but he was a big part of it."

This is where a general manager has to play amateur psychologist at times. The last thing that Armstrong wanted was for a contract to be a distraction for Binnington, or for his salary to be at a level that wasn't comfortable for him among other multimillionaires on the team.

"We put him in a spot where he doesn't have to think for two years. He can walk into the locker room knowing that his salary structure isn't one where he has to be embarrassed by it. And if he takes that next step, there's another tier or two that goalies get paid at. And I think he can get there," he said.

"He went 25-4 and won 16 playoff games. If he performs at that rate for his career, we're talking about a Hall of Famer that has multiple Stanley Cups. Now, is it realistic to think that someone can play at the level for that long? So we wanted to pay him fairly for a couple of years. I don't think it's about keeping him hungry, but about having him continue to prove [it]."

Binnington knows that even after the Stanley Cup win, there are doubters. Was it a fluke? Was it a flash in the pan? Are we really witnessing the dawn of a franchise goalie's career?

"It's different," he said of his status entering his first full NHL season. "But I like different things. Learning how to adapt. New opportunities. It's the same game, though, right? Work hard, compete, give your team a chance to win every night."

A tour of the Blues locker room before the season found much the same sentiment about the team: Yes, being a defending champion changes some things. But not the game. The game's the same.

"Everybody's back to zero," defenseman Colton Parayko said. "That year was a fun year, but in order for us to do the same thing, we've gotta hit the reset button. Remember the things that got us there, what it took to win. It's not easy. It's not by fluke getting there. The hard part is that everybody will be coming and giving us their best game. They're coming to beat us."

This is where Binnington's most notable attribute as a goalie will be perhaps his greatest advantage.

"He's so mentally tough. You can't rattle him. He's prepared for everything. He's got a plan and he's sticking to it," said Redquest, who first met Binnington when the goalie was a 16-year-old playing with the OHL's Owen Sound Attack.

Binnington has started strongly, no doubt: 2-1-1 on the season, with a .910 save percentage and a 2.97 goals-against average. There will be peaks and valleys for him and his team. But he has shown that he has an unflappable comportment. That was the case during his time in the American Hockey League, when it seemed like the Blues' crease would never open up for him. That was the case in the Stanley Cup playoffs last season, when he lost two consecutive games just twice in four rounds, and won three of four games on the road in Boston in the finals.

"Jordan was the one guy who believed in himself, and he's just adding people to that ship of Jordan Binnington believers," Armstrong said.

Before this season, there was both mental and physical preparation for Binnington, and not a lot of time for it after the Blues went seven games in the finals and his offseason extended to the NHL Awards as well.

"You have to adapt. This year it was a shorter schedule. But I had to pace myself. You don't want to overdo it. I tried to take care of my body after that long playoff season," he said.

What Redquest has observed at the start of the season are some tweaks to Binnington's game.

"Holy s---, he's more powerful and better balanced than he was last year. He's making tough saves look easy," he said. "His game is also calmer than it was last year. Less movement. Big saves and less moment. I can get up faster than he does, and I have one bad hip. But that's because he's conserving energy."

Then there's what Redquest calls Binnington's "computer mind" when he's on his game. "He knows what his save is, and what his next save is going to be, wherever that next shot is coming from," he said.

For Binnington, those adjustments were part of his desire to always pursue greatness on a professional and personal level. "Just keep growing. As a person, as a goaltender, as an athlete. I hate losing. I just try to put myself in a position to constantly win," he said.

All of this adds up to Binnington being a different, perhaps better goalie than he was as a Calder Trophy finalist. What hasn't changed is his confident swagger -- please recall the "Do I look nervous?" moment that defined him last season -- that cuts through the usually stoic way he interacts with the media.

Binnington doesn't always show every facet of his personality when the cameras and microphones are on. There's a charisma that comes pouring out in certain situations, but not in every public appearance. It was on display at the Blues' Stanley Cup celebration. It was also there back in Richmond Hill, as Binnington interacted with old friends and old teammates.

"It's special, right? They're a part of your journey. A part of your memories. And I definitely have some memories playing with them," he said.

Then there was the trip to see his grandfather on the morning of his day with the Cup. Binnington held the chalice, tilting it slightly so his grandpa -- decked out in Blues championship gear -- could sip beer out of the bowl with a straw.

"Paper straw. Environment friendly," Binnington quipped.

Grandpa wasn't drinking from the Stanley Cup last summer. Jordan Binnington wasn't a defending champion, nor an NHL starter.

In a sense, everything has changed for him. But to those who know him best, very little has changed about Jordan Binnington.

"He told me he's on the A-list now," Redquest said. "I said no, you're just Binner to me."

Oh, no, here we go again. The 4-0-1 Buffalo Sabres are off to a hot start and could emerge as a spoiler in the top-heavy Atlantic Division. Forgive us if you've heard this before, then ended the season disappointed. This year, maybe, could it be for real?

This once-proud fanbase is desperate to win. Buffalo routinely ranks among the top TV markets for the Stanley Cup playoffs -- despite the Sabres' most recent appearance coming in the 2010-11 season. The Cup-less Sabres last appeared in a conference championship in 1999. Since winning the Presidents' Trophy in 2010, Buffalo has posted two winning seasons and has cycled through six coaches. The Sabres lead the league with their eight-season playoff drought.

Then there was last season. Buffalo teased fans with a franchise-record 10-game winning streak in November. For about three weeks, the Sabres were the toast of the league, the first team to finish the previous season with the worst record and lead the NHL outright in points after 25 games, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.

Then they spiraled. The Sabres went 16-33-8 to close the campaign, good for the worst record in the league in that span.

"Last year, we really rode the wave when things were going well," GM Jason Botterill said. "And then when adversity occurred, we didn't handle it well."

Jump ahead:
Emptying the notebook | What we liked this week
Three stars of the week | Biggest games coming up

Botterill spent the summer working on safeguards so history didn't repeat itself. The first step was hiring a new coach after parting with Phil Housley, whose stint lasted two seasons. The Sabres landed on Ralph Krueger. After being fired by the Edmonton Oilers (via Skype) after the lockout-shortened 2012-13 season, Krueger went overseas and switched sports. He spent the past five years as chairman of Southampton F.C. of the English Premier League.

Coaches across sports are learning to adapt as they try to not only reach millennials and Generation Z but also motivate them. It's especially important for the Sabres, who have the seventh-youngest roster by average age (26.3) this season. "What drew me to [Krueger] was his communication skills," Botterill says. "When you sit down with him, you get this clear understanding of what he's trying to communicate to you. He's definitely in tuned to you. You feel like you're the most important person in the world right then and there."

Botterill knows the team's youth is both its best asset and a weakness. That was especially so last season, when things unraveled. "You can talk to young players, like a [Rasmus] Dahlin or [Casey] Mittelstadt, about how difficult the 82-game grind is," Botterill said. "But until they go through it, it's very difficult."

That includes franchise center Jack Eichel, who is known as being very competitive but is just 22. "Jack has gone through a full year of being a captain in the NHL now, and I guarantee you he'll be a better captain this year because now he's been through it," Botterill said. "He knows what worked last year and what areas he can be better."

Boterill notes that three of the most important players on his team -- Eichel, No. 2 overall pick in 2014 Sam Reinhart and minutes-eating blueliner Rasmus Ristolainen -- have more than 1,000 combined games of NHL experience but are under the age of 24. And none has ever played playoff hockey.

"Something that is kind of forgotten at times is just how young we are," Botterill said. "We didn't think after [last season] that we needed an overhaul, but we wanted to add to this group."

The GM went out to bolster his roster with experience. The Sabres traded for Brandon Montour last season and liked that the 25-year-old had experienced a long playoff run with the Ducks in 2017. The Sabres also traded for defenseman Colin Miller (Stanley Cup Final with the Golden Knights in 2018) and forward Jimmy Vesey (a playoff run with the Rangers in 2017) and inked Marcus Johansson (NHL playoffs in eight of his nine NHL seasons) in free agency.

"If we're going to have success here and we're going to turn things around, we have to have people who are excited about being in Buffalo and being part of this organization" Botterill said. "That's been Marcus. He's been all-in since day one."

The Sabres immediately named Johansson an alternate captain. Boterill said Johansson has been great mentoring the young Swedes -- there are four on the roster -- and spent time in camp working with Mittelstadt and prospect Tage Thompson.

"Yeah, we're off to a good start, but we know we're going to face adversity," Botterill said. "Having that leadership and calmness in the locker room is going to be important for our group going forward."

In two of the Sabres' wins so far, they squandered a two-goal third-period lead (including allowing the Panthers to tie the game with 11 seconds left on Friday) but pulled it off. Against the Canadiens, it was Johansson who played overtime hero.

Another important summer addition: goaltending coach Mike Bales, who got the most out of Carolina's goalie tandem of Petr Mrazek and Curtis McElhinney last season. Bales resigned from Carolina in the spring and signed with Buffalo; he worked with Botterill when they were both with the Penguins. Bales has a reputation as the guy who helped revive Marc-Andre Fleury's career, and he is now tasked with getting the most out of 33-year-old Carter Hutton while preparing the way for 26-year-old Linus Ullmark, who the Sabres hope can take the reins soon.

The breakout star of the Sabres has been 24-year-old winger Victor Olofsson, who tied an NHL record by scoring his first six goals on the power play. Olofsson, a 2014 seventh-round pick of the previous regime, went to six development camps before he finally got his shot with the big club this season -- on a line with Eichel and Reinhart, no less.

Olofsson scored 30 goals in the AHL last season, but the Sabres were pleased with how AHL coach Chris Taylor worked and improved Olofsson's defensive awareness, and they were impressed with his shot and offensive sense. As a late-season call-up last spring, Olofsson recorded two goals and two assists in six games. "Sometimes those games at the end of the year, it's not the same intensity, when you're out of the playoffs and playing other teams out of the playoffs too," Botterill said. "It can give guys a false security that they're ready for the National Hockey League. Instead of Victor just thinking it was going to happen, you could tell he worked extremely hard on his body this offseason. He came to camp so serious and focus. We moved him around a lot during training camp, and no matter where he played, he was effective."

The question, of course, is can the Sabres sustain it this time? The Sabres and the NFL's Buffalo Bills share ownership in Terry and Kim Pegula, which means Botterill and his staff often interact with their football counterparts. For example, Botterill sat in on the Bills' war room at last spring's NFL draft. The 4-1 Bills also have fans cautiously optimistic.

Can you imagine if both teams won at the same time?

"There's certainly excitement with fans around here with both teams, and we hope we can keep it up," Botterill said. "These fans definitely deserve it."

Emptying the notebook

There will be a lot of scrutiny this week on the winless Devils (0-3-2), who are off to a sluggish start. They've been outscored 23-9 while being shut out twice. The Devils have been to the playoffs just once since they lost the 2012 Stanley Cup Final, and that was when coach John Hynes led a scrappy, overachieving group in 2018. Has the goodwill worn off? GM Ray Shero is typically loyal and patient with coaches, but let's remember how much he put into transforming this team this past summer after New Jersey won the draft lottery and the chance to select Jack Hughes.

The biggest priority now is convincing Taylor Hall to stick long-term. Hall has said that his No. 1 factor in deciding where to play next season will be the desire to be on a team close to winning a Stanley Cup. Hall's quote to me in September: "I'm not really at a point in my career where location matters to me, if I want to be on the West Coast or East Coast or anything like that. You can make any city great if you're playing well and you're winning there. So that's basically my priority."

Goaltending was a concern for the Devils entering this season, and Cory Schneider, 33, is not off to an inspiring October. In three starts, he has an .897 save percentage and 3.33 goals-against average. Mackenzie Blackwood, who the Devils hope is their goalie of the future, is even worse, at .821 save percentage and 4.90 GAA in three appearances. It was especially interesting in seeing how Schneider would start the season after chatting with him in training camp. "This summer was probably the best I've felt in a long time," Schneider told me. "I know a lot of guys probably say that going into camp. I don't know if I'm in the best shape of my life -- I was in pretty good shape when I was 23 -- but physically I feel like I'm the best I've felt in terms of aches and pains for the first time in four to five years and not coming off a surgery. That has me excited."

Schneider said his 2018-19 season was plagued by an unsettling pattern. "It was physical, then it was mental, then it was physical, and then it was mental," he said of his struggles. "So you sort of get stuck in this cycle, but I finally got out of it and felt comfortable again."

Schneider also said this in September: "Everyone comes into camp thinking they're going to win it all. We can see how quickly it can go well or how quickly it can go badly. So for me, especially, a fast start will take a lot of that pressure and a lot of those questions away."

Patrick Marleau trained this summer as if he were going to an NHL training camp. Then September rolled around, and the 40-year-old was in uncharted territory. After being traded by the Leafs and bought out by the Carolina Hurricanes, Marleau waited for someone to call. And then waited. And then waited some more. He said he never really feared not playing this season, but that didn't make it any easier.

"Everyone around me kept me pretty grounded. I knew -- well, I was hopeful -- the right opportunity would come," he said. "There was interest. It was just a little bit of a weird situation, where everyone was a little too late to get into a training camp, and then most teams have their rosters and wanted to see what they had. I kind of knew that, but at the same time, it was all new to [me], so I didn't know how to think or approach it."

Marleau called it "a long summer." But he knew he needed to be ready. So he kept lifting, which is easy, as gyms are everywhere, but had to put in more work to find chances to skate. Marleau, who spends his offseasons in San Jose, bounced around the Bay Area organizing ice time for himself. He tried to get on the ice every day. He kept calling rinks, "OK, one more week. ... OK, one more week."

Then Sharks GM Doug Wilson called. The early-sputtering Sharks wanted to sign Marleau, their franchise leader in points (1,082), goals (508), power-play goals (160), game-winning goals (98) and games played (1,493). Marleau described it as "an emotional conversation."

Marleau made a pit stop at the Sharks facility on Tuesday to pick up some gear -- "It definitely felt like I should be there again. It felt right to be able to walk into the building," he said -- then joined the team on Wednesday in Chicago. Organizing all of that skating paid off. After the veteran's first morning skate, Sharks coach Peter DeBoer noted that Marleau didn't look like he was 40 -- and definitely didn't skate like someone who missed an entire training camp.

Marleau was immediately thrust onto the top line, and he scored two goals as San Jose picked up its first win of the season against the Blackhawks.

I asked Marleau what he thinks of when he reflects on his stint with the Maple Leafs. "Mostly just the friendships," he said. "I also think of that little bit of adventure, going over there with the family and spurring a little adventure in them and a little uneasiness, too. But the friendships I made there will always be something special to me."

Marleau became very close with two of the team's young stars: Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner. The 20-somethings became frequent guests at Patrick and Christina Marleau's home for dinner, Christmas and basement hockey with the Marleaus' four sons: Brody, Caleb, Landon and Jagger. Marleau mentioned both players by name in a message posted to Christina's Twitter account:

Hi, Patrick here. I don't have my own social media, so I wanted to come here and say a few words to @MapleLeafs, their fans and also to @Marner93 and @AM34 pic.twitter.com/6Te4oePdLa

— Christina Marleau (@c_marleau) June 22, 2019

Marleau said both Marner and Matthews immediately texted him after he signed. "They were both really happy for me," he said.

Three stars of the week

1. James Neal, RW, Edmonton Oilers

Neal had five goals in three games this week to give him seven goals on the season -- matching his total from all of last season in Calgary. This change-of-scenery trade was a big deal. Instead of lamenting what was lost for the Flames last season, let's consider how Neal could elevate the Oilers to a playoff team.

2. Carter Hart, G, Philadelphia Flyers

The 21-year-old continues to convince us that he is the answer to Philly's decades-long goaltending woes. He has allowed five goals in three starts this season, and this week alone, he stopped 47 of 49 shots (.959 save percentage, 0.96 GAA), which includes his first career shutout against the Devils. We also have an early front-runner for save of the year:

3. Dougie Hamilton, D, Carolina Hurricanes

The Canes made it to 5-0 for the first time in franchise history -- yes, even including the Whalers -- and in the process, Hamilton had a week, scoring three goals and adding an assist. He has scored in each of Carolina's past four games.

Honorable mention: Patrik Laine, RW, Winnipeg Jets. The Finn is finally playing on Winnipeg's top line, and does he ever look good alongside Mark Scheifele and Blake Wheeler. Laine, who signed a two-year, prove-it bridge deal to end his RFA standoff, has seven points (two goals) in three games this week.

What we liked this past week

No. 2 overall pick Kaapo Kakko scored the first of what will be many NHL goals. The goal -- his move to deke Mike Smith is a beauty -- is almost as great as the celebration. This joy is so pure.

The emotion says it all.

Career goal No. 1 for Kaapo Kakko! pic.twitter.com/XAY2WGedk8

— NHL (@NHL) October 12, 2019

Brad Marchand is known to be a pest. Look how pesty he is on this shift, just toying with the Devils on their power play. A clinic in penalty killing:

Jonathan Drouin came armed to face the scrum of media:

Jon S̶n̶o̶w̶ Drouin présente le nouvel object remis au joueur du match cette saison. ?️#GoHabsGo pic.twitter.com/lhp2D7Tuh3

— Canadiens Montréal (@CanadiensMTL) October 13, 2019

Drouin, by the way, is off to a terrific start after a rocky first two years in Montreal. The Quebec native has six points through his first five games and seems to be winning over Habs fans.

There was a sweet story on the Today Show this week about Simon and Sawyer Seidl, brothers adopted from Congo who are budding hockey stars in Minnesota. P.K. Subban took notice of the story, which led to this very cool shout-out by their sister, Rylie.

What we didn't like this past week

The Avalanche are off to a 4-0 start, and fans around Colorado have to be excited about this young team poised to contend now and for the foreseeable future. The only problem? Most fans can't watch them on TV.

In an infuriating standoff that has dragged into the season, Altitude TV (which carries Avalanche games, as well as Nuggets games) is in dispute with three major TV providers, leaving games off-air for anyone who has Comcast, DirecTV or DISH.

To make things worse, if fans purchase a league-wide NHL streaming subscription, home games are blacked out in the local market.

The Avs are one of the youngest teams in the league. They skate well, have a strong work ethic and feature world-class talent on the top line. They also have an endearing young star in Cale Makar, the Calder Trophy favorite, who has a point in each of his four games and should probably treat himself to a Slurpee or two.

Makar was a key figure in the thrilling, come-from-behind win against the defending Eastern Conference champion Bruins last week. It's a shame so many weren't able to see it.

Games of the week

Monday, Oct. 14: Dallas Stars at Buffalo Sabres

We just wrapped up the second week of the season, but the 1-4-1 Stars are already preaching the importance of the upcoming four-game road swing. "Everyone in here, including myself, needs to have a playoff mentality going on this road trip," Tyler Seguin told a reporter this week. "If you're chasing behind in this league, like everyone knows, that St. Louis season doesn't happen every year. " Meanwhile, you just read plenty of words about the Sabres' hot start.

Tuesday, Oct. 15: Nashville Predators at Vegas Golden Knights (ESPN+)

Two powers of the Western Conference clash Tuesday in what should be a fun heavyweight match. While Vegas is looking like the class of the conference, Nashville has arguably been a more compelling team to watch early. Just this week, the Predators took down the Caps in a 6-5 win, then stormed back from a three-goal deficit against the Kings, only to fall 7-4.

Thursday, Oct. 17: Tampa Bay Lightning at Boston Bruins (ESPN+)

Follow Tuesday's Western showdown with a matchup between two of the most talented teams in the East. This game sets up a stretch of three straight games against Atlantic Division rivals for the Bruins, as they'll subsequently have a home-and-home against the Toronto Maple Leafs. After that, the early pecking order in the Atlantic Division might be clarified a bit.

Quote of the week

"It's loud. It's electric. But they just have louder speakers than everybody else. That's all it is."

-- Brad Marchand in an interview with NESN, chirping about the Vegas Golden Knights' home-ice advantage

Barcelona have announced their support for the nine separatist leaders from Catalonia handed prison terms of between nine and 13 years over their role in a failed bid for independence from Spain.

The Spanish champions said "prison is not the solution" and called on political leaders to engage in dialogue to resolve the ongoing conflict.

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All nine defendants had been held without bail for almost two years and were sentenced on Monday. They were all acquitted of the gravest charge, rebellion, but were found guilty of sedition. Three other defendants were found culpable of disobedience but were not handed jail terms.

The landmark ruling in Spain relates to a 2017 referendum on independence, which was deemed illegal by central government, organised by Catalan politicians and civil leaders.

"In the same way that the preventive prison sentence didn't help to resolve the conflict, neither will the prison sentence given [on Monday], because prison is not the solution," Barca said in a statement.

"The resolution of the conflict in Catalonia must come exclusively from political dialogue.

"Therefore, now more than ever, the club asks all political leaders to lead a process of dialogue and negotiation to resolve this conflict, which should also allow for the release of convicted civic and political leaders.

"Barcelona also expresses all its support and solidarity to the families of those who are deprived of their freedom."

Elsewhere, the Catalan Football Federation announced all activity on Monday had been suspended, while La Liga side Espanyol, based in Barcelona, and second division side Girona also released short statements.

Espanyol said that they "respected the court's decisions" but regretted the situation and, like Barca, called for dialogue to help find a solution.

Girona's response was much stronger: "The club, which has always defended freedom of expression and the right to decide, rejects the sentences. They will not resolve the situation, which requires a political solution.

"Girona back a process of dialogue and negotiation between all parties. This process must include the liberation of the condemned civic leaders and politicians, who have been unjustly jailed for the last two years."

The referendum, which took place in October 2017, resulted in an overwhelming win for the separatists and led to a short-lived independence declaration. However, the vote was marred by violence between Spanish police, who were trying to shut the ballots down, and the general public.

As a result of the trouble, Barca opted to play their game that day, a league fixture against Las Palmas, behind closed doors at Camp Nou.

An emotional Gerard Pique, who voted in the referendum, described the match as the "worst experience" of his professional career.

Barca have avoided positioning themselves on either side of the independence date, but Monday's statement is not the first time the club has stepped into the debate.

In 2013, they allowed Camp Nou to be used for the Concert for Freedom, which demanded self-determination for Catalonia and other nations around the world. Later that same year, on Sept. 11, Catalonia's national day, an independence march was allowed to pass through the club's stadium.

New South Wales have been forced to move their first home Sheffield Shield match of the season against Tasmania away from the SCG amid concerns about the surface.

The wicket block was damaged when the Sydney Roosters rugby league team trained at the ground a fortnight ago ahead of the NRL Grand Final, and it has been decided the surface is not fit to host first-class cricket. The actual pitch designated for the Shield match would have been playable, but the rest of the square would not have been able to take the traffic of a four-day game.

The match will now likely be played at Drummoyne Oval with next week's Marsh Cup match against Tasmania on October 23 also under threat of being moved.

ALSO READ: Everybody loses in Sydney's turf wars

"We were unaware there was a problem until this morning," Lee Germon, the NSW chief executive, said. "Our cricketers love playing at the SCG, which is the traditional home of NSW cricket. It is a great disappointment to our players and everyone at Cricket NSW that we can no longer play there over the next week."

The increase in domestic fixtures at the SCG had been a significant win for New South Wales when the schedules were announced earlier this season, with four of their five home Sheffield Shield matches set for the Test venue.

"Our male players were looking forward to playing four of their five home Shield matches and a one-day match at the SCG this season, something that has rarely happened over the past decade or so," Germon said. "Our off-season training and planning was based squarely around the fact that most of our matches would be at the SCG this season, creating an extra buzz of excitement.

"It is important that our current and future international cricketers have the opportunity to play as much cricket as possible on the SCG. This is particularly so early in the season when many of our senior players are available for the Sheffield Shield ahead of the international season."

There was an increase in the amount of winter sport played at the SCG this year due to the demolition of the Allianz Stadium next door.

The SCG has resisted a move to the drop-in pitches which are seen at Adelaide, Melbourne and the new Perth Stadium.

The ground hosts its first international of the season on November 3 with a T20I against Pakistan.

As he prepares to take charge as the BCCI president, former India captain Sourav Ganguly has said the welfare of the country's domestic players will be his foremost priority. Ganguly, who is set to become the first president of BCCI since the board adopted the reforms recommended by the Lodha Committee, said he had no idea that he would emerge as the favourite in the presidential race, but said he would accept the "challenge".

He is already ready with his to-do list. "We will speak to everyone first as we take a decision, but my biggest priority will be to look after first-class cricketers," Ganguly told PTI in the early hours of Monday.

Ganguly said he had asked the Committee of Administrators (CoA) to provide financial security for domestic cricketers when the panel was appointed by the Supreme Court to supervise the BCCI and help it implement the reforms. "I have been requesting that to the CoA for three years. That's the first thing I will do, look after the financial health of our first-class cricketers."

Ganguly admitted he was surprised at the turn of events at the meeting on Sunday in Mumbai, which was arranged by the powerbrokers of the board led by former BCCI presidents N Srinivasan and Anurag Thakur.

ALSO READ: Sourav Ganguly likely to take over as BCCI president

Ganguly said he was a newcomer to the board politics and witnessed firsthand how quickly things change. Earlier on Sunday he felt former India opener Brijesh Patel was likely to become the BCCI president. However, a few hours later he emerged as the favourite, receiving the backing of the two former BCCI presidents, Srinivasan and Thakur. "I didn't know I would be the president when I came down. You [reporters] asked me and I told you it's Brijesh and when I went up, I came to know it has changed. I have never been in a BCCI election and I never knew it worked like this."

Ganguly did not want to dwell too much on the strong likelihood of him emerging as the sole nomination for the president's post. As per the timeline laid out by the BCCI's electoral officer, today is the deadline to file nominations for the five office bearers' positions: president, secretary, joint-secretary, treasurer and one vice-president.

"Whether unopposed or not, there has to be a responsibility as it is the biggest organisation in world cricket," Ganguly said. "Financially, India is a cricketing powerhouse, so it will be a challenge."

He said the new job would be daunting but nothing compared to leading India on the field. "Nothing can beat being an India captain," he said.

One challenge for Ganguly could be the limited time he likely has as BCCI president. According to the new BCCI constitution, an officer bearer has to undergo a cooling-off period of three years if he has completed six consecutive years at state association and/or BCCI level. Ganguly has been an office bearer at the Cricket Association of Bengal (where he was recently re-elected as president) for five-plus years, and so he has about 10 months left before the cooling-off period should come into effect.

For now, Ganguly is looking at the bigger picture. "I am taking over at a time when the BCCI has not been in greatest of position for the last three years. Its image has got hampered quite a lot. It's a great opportunity for me to do something good."

Virat Kohli's career-best 254 not out in India's second Test win over South Africa in Pune has vaulted him back above the 900-point mark in the ICC rankings for Test batsmen, and has put him within touching distance of top-ranked Steven Smith.

Kohli's tally stands at 936 points, while Smith sits on 937. The India captain will have the opportunity to regain the top spot, which Smith wrested from him on his return to Test cricket in the 2019 Ashes, when India face South Africa in the third Test in Ranchi, starting October 19.

Among the bowlers in action in Pune, R Ashwin moved from tenth to seventh, having picked up six wickets in the innings-and-137-run win inside four days, which helped India get a winning 2-0 lead in the series.

Kohli overcame a mini-slump on the way to his first triple-figure score in Test cricket in 2019. After the first Test - which India had won by 203 runs - Kohli had fallen below 900 rating points for the first time since January 2018.

Ashwin followed his seven-for in the first innings of the first Test with another good show in the second, to move ahead of Vernon Philander on the bowlers' table. Philander fell three places and is now sitting on eighth.

Other players who made significant movements included India opener Mayank Agarwal, who followed a double-century in the first Test with a century in the second to rise to a career-high 17th spot. Umesh Yadav, who was making a comeback to the Test side, took six wickets and jumped six places to at 25th spot.