Good morning!
Any inclination Vladimir Putin might have of brokering a peace deal with Ukraine would likely be helped by his need to show off the Russian hockey team at next year’s Olympics. The Russians have been excluded from international hockey competition since the invasion more than two years ago.

A precursor to the Games is the International Ice Hockey Federation World Championship which began Friday in northern Europe. Bernardston’s Doug Weiss flew out of Bradley last week to serve as Team USA’s doctor and orthopedic surgeon.

Others with Bay State connections include former Boston College forwards Cutter Gauthier and Will Smith — now with Anaheim and San Jose respectively — BU defenseman Cole Hutson and Bruins defenseman Andrew Peeke and goalie Jeremy Swayman.

The team is captained by Clayton Keller who was 12th in scoring in the league for Utah this season. The alternate captains are Tage Thompson — a 44-goal scorer for Buffalo — and Nashville defenseman Brady Skjei. 

The head coach is Ryan Warsofsky of Marshfield and the San Jose Sharks.

In a pre-tourney tilt this week the Americans beat the Germans 5-2, and outshot them 37-23.

“We have a really good team but Canada and Sweden are stacked,” Weiss texted. “Our roster isn’t finalized so we’ll see.”

The Americans are grouped with Denmark, Czechia, Hungary, Germany, Kazakhstan, Switzerland and Norway, and will be seeking their first IIHF World Championship since 1933. 

Weiss was the team physician when they last reached the podium by winning the bronze in 2021. “You come here and see how every player loves to compete for his country,” he said. “It’s a playoff tempo.”

Canada has won 28 gold medals since the tourney began in 1920. The boys from north of the border have an NHL-laden roster helmed by Columbus Blue Jackets coach Dean Evason that includes Sidney Crosby (Penguins), Ryan O’Reilly (Predators) Brandon Montour (Kraken), Nathan MacKinnon (Avalanche) and grizzled veteran Marc-Andre Fleury between the pipes.

Defending champ Czechia is bouyed David Pastrnak’s presence. Last year, Pastrnak arrived in time to score the winning goal against Switzerland. The game was in Prague, only 200 miles from where Pastrnak was born in Havirov.

Team USA played Denmark Friday and has upcoming preliminary games against Hungary on Sunday at 6:20 a.m., Switzerland on Monday at 10:20 a.m. and Norway on Wednesday at 10:20 a.m., followed by puck-drops against Germany, Kazakhstan, and Czechia. All times are Eastern.

The quarterfinals are on May 22 in Hernig, Denmark, and Stockholm, Sweden, and the semifinals and finals will be at the Globe Arena in Stockholm on May 24 and 25. All games will be telecast on the NHL Network.

****

Thoughts on the Sox: Through 38 games last season the Red Sox were 19-19 en route to finishing 81-81. This season they’re 19-19 and en route to who knows where, but in 200 games they’re 100-100 and the epitome of mediocrity.

At this writing they led the league in at bats, doubles, slugging percentage and strikeouts, and were tied with Seattle for stolen bases, yet were spinning their wheels. Why? Pitching of course. Boston’s hurlers are ninth in the league in ERA (4.01), one spot ahead of the mighty Chicago White Sox.

Alex Bregman and Wilyer Abreu have accounted for 40 percent of the team’s home run production. Bregman bats third, the same as Carl Yastrzemski, Big Papi and Mo Vaughn. He’s an MVP candidate and a hired gun, and $40 million might not be enough to keep him here.

Leadoff hitter Jarren Duran is a latter day Rickey Henderson. Durran can run, hit, hit for power and steal. The only thing he can’t do is walk — six times since April 12 when he sat out against the White Sox.

Abreu has steadily moved up the order from seventh on opening day to cleanup until Cora dropped him to fifth behind ROY candidate Kristian Campbell.

Trevor Story has been dropped to sixth in the order. Story was the Giancarlo of Boston for three years, playing in just 163 of 486 regular season games. He’s missed three games this season and gets an A for staying healthy.

Ceddanne Rafaela is batting .225 and is utterly expendable; the catching corps of Carlos Narvaez and Connor Wong is batting .201 with three home runs and utterly forgettable. Boston gave up one of the best catching prospects in baseball for a pitcher whose velocity is dropping which is the first sign of arm trouble.

After the Red Sox lost to Texas on Tuesday, Jason Kelly said on the Bastards of Boston Baseball podcast: “I’ve never heard so many people call into sports radio saying Alex Cora needs to be fired.”

One way to keep the wolves away from the clubhouse door would be to give the people what they want and put Rafael Devers at first base. It might not work, but you’ll never know until you try. Tristan, we hardly knew ye.

****

Fifty years ago they wanted to put a nuke plant on the Connecticut River in Hinsdale, but the town said no and they built it across the river in Vernon. Protests ensued and vandals changed a Vernon exit sign on I-91 to read Vernobyl.

Vernon had the green but Hinsdale High School had the gold. In 1971, the boys soccer team won the state championship. It was the first of 18 state titles and six runner-up finishes in 20 years in either soccer, basketball or baseball.

“All the coaches and most of the players are still alive,” said Joe Sarsfield, who lettered in all three sports from 1968-72. Many of them will be at the Branch and Blade Brewing Company in Keene on May 31 to browse through photos and press clippings and remember the good times. The event will be from noon to 4 p.m. and everyone is invited.

****

Northfield’s Chloe Rourke helped the West Texas A&M Horse Team win its first D-I championship last month at the National Ranch Association’s National Championship in Amarillo.

The Buffaloes out-performed four-time defending champion Texas Tech and other schools like Texas A&M and New Mexico State.

A sophomore and NMH grad, Rourke and four of her teammates placed in the top 10 in ranch reining, stock horse pleasure, ranch trail and cow work.

****

Former NFL linebacker Brandon Copeland of athletes.org spoke with Ross Tucker this week about organizing a players’ association similar to the NFL’s. “Thirty-five percent of college football players who’ve said they’ve been promised money have never received it,” said Copeland. “These are not small schools. These are Top 25 schools. The players get there and the schools find a way not to pay it.”

“And most of the kids are too scared to say anything,” said Tucker.

****

SQUIBBERS: Before the Knicks-Celtics series started, Mike Francesa criticized betting apps for dishing out crooked odds: “Right now the Celtics are minus-835 to win the series. There’s no reason that bettors should have to bet $835 to make $100 on the Celtics but get only $550 for betting the Knicks. That’s outrageous.”… Francesa had Sovereignty to win the Derby at 7-1. “Will I take a bow on the Derby?” he asked himself. “Yeah, I guess so.” …  Pablo Sandoval the Kung Fu Panda who ate his way out of Boston, is playing for the Staten Island FerryHawks. … One take that makes sense about why Bill Belichick has his 24-year-old girlfriend at spring practice is that she can help Mr. Grouch learn to relate to the young players. … Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt is out $12 million after an employee at Stocks and Securities Ltd. made off with his loot. … After decades of service at the courthouse, Brennan McGuane has retired and can now watch all the soccer he wants. Congrats Brennan, for reaching your goooaaalll!! … BC football has sold out its season ticket allotment. The Eagles host California, UConn, Clemson, Notre Dame, SMU and Ga.Tech this season. … Joe Maddon to Bob Costas on fighting words between Tigers pitcher Tarik Skubal and Angels rookie Zach Neto: “I loved it. Skubal’s as old school as it gets and Neto gives the Angels some kind of culture shift as regards to toughness.” … As the great Bob Gibson said about what it takes to win: “In a world filled with hate, prejudice and protest, I find that I too am filled with hate, prejudice and protest.”

Chip Ainsworth is an award-winning columnist who has penned his observations about sports for decades in the Pioneer Valley. He can be reached at chipjet715@gmail.com