Newsmakers
Recommended A FIFA task force on Tuesday recommended playing the 2022 World Cup in November- December to avoid the summer heat in Qatar. FIFA said the task force chose the “most viable period” over other proposals to play in January, April or May, dates favored mostly by European soccer. FIFA also said the tournament should be shorter than the current 32-day schedule.
Signed Forward Jordan Nolan signed a three-year extension with the Los Angeles Kings. The 25-year-old Nolan has four goals this season in 36 games for the defending Stanley Cup champion Kings, who’ve worked their way back into the thick of the playoff race with a seven-game winning streak.
Announced Former captain Davis Love III was named U.S. captain for the 2016 Ryder Cup, earning another shot to lead the American team. Love was captain in a losing effort in 2012. He becomes the first repeat U.S. captain since Jack Nicklaus in 1987.
• Local officials in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, say moving the Pawtucket Red Sox to the state’s capital will devastate the smaller city’s economy. Boston Red Sox president Larry Lucchino and a group of Rhode Island businessmen announced they had purchased the Triple-A baseball club and are planning to move the team to Providence.
• There’s a new buzz surrounding Boston Bruins goalie Tuukka Rask. A Boston-area researcher who was part of a team that discovered a new species of wasp in Kenya has named the insect Thaumatodryinus tuukkaraski in Rask’s honor. Robert Copeland, an entomologist at the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology in Nairobi who grew up in Newton, Massachusetts, named the wasp after the Stanley Cup champion to show his admiration for the player.
Traded The Montreal Canadiens have traded rookie Jiri Sekac to the Anaheim Ducks for Devante Smith-Pelly, a swap of wingers.
Sidelined Cleveland Cavaliers veteran forward Shawn Marion is expected to miss two weeks with a hip injury. A four-time All-Star, Marion recently announced that this will be his final NBA season. He signed as a free agent with the Cavs to try and win a second championship.
Agreed The New York Islanders have agreed to terms with Nick Leddy on a seven-year contract, keeping the 23-year-old defenseman away from restricted free agency. The contract is worth $38.5 million.