Chelios Apologizes

Chris Chelios, the captain of the U.S. Olympic hockey team, sent an apology and a $3,000 check to Japanese Olympic officials on Friday for the damage teammates caused to their rooms after losing to the Czech Republic last month.

“Certain conduct by a few members of our team … was inexcusable,” the Chicago Blackhawks defenseman wrote.

“I want to take this opportunity to apologize to the people of Japan, the Japanese Olympic committee, the USOC, and to all hockey fans throughout the world.”

Chelios, who has denied causing any of the damage and said he was cleared of wrongdoing, said the $3,000 was meant to cover damages on Feb. 18 to three rooms at Nagano’s Olympic Village.

Edmonton group bids

A group of local investors took a major step toward keeping the Edmonton Oilers from moving to the United States, submitting a bid to buy the team just hours before the deadline.

The group had until midnight to submit an offer to buy the team for $70 million from owner Peter Pocklington.

Under a previous agreement between Pocklington and the city of Edmonton, any local offer of at least $70 million would take precedence over an $82 million offer from Houston businessman Les Alexander.

Tkachuk out 2 weeks

Phoenix Coyotes captain Keith Tkachuk will be sidelined two weeks because of a fractured rib, dimming his chances for a third straight 50-goal season.

Dallas loses Modano

The Western Conference-leading Dallas Stars, already badly hit by injuries, found out that leading scorer Mike Modano is out for at least the rest of the regular season with a severely separated right shoulder.