Newsmakers

Resigned An army general who headed the public body that coordinates planning for the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro resigned on Friday. In a brief statement, the office of Brazil President Dilma Rousseff said General Fernando Azevedo de Silva had stepped down. The statement gave no details. In an announcement last month, Azevedo de Silva’s Olympic Public Authority said public and private spending on the games had reached almost 38 billion Brazilian reals ($14 billion).

Injured Star goaltender Henrik Lundqvist of the New York Rangers will miss at least three weeks after being hit in the throat by a shot last weekend. The Rangers said Lundqvist sustained a vascular injury last Saturday. Lundqvist was hurt when he was struck by a shot from Carolina’s Brad Malone. Lundqvist is 25-11-3 with a 2.25 goals-against average this season.

• Winnipeg Jets forward Evander Kane will undergo left shoulder surgery and be out of the lineup for four to six months. Kane has 22 points in 37 games this season, but was a healthy scratch for Tuesday’s game against Vancouver.

• Rajon Rondo won’t return before the All-Star break as the Dallas Mavericks point guard recovers from breaking the orbital bone of his left eye. The Mavericks said that Rondo would miss the remaining three games before the break, starting tonight against Portland. He will also miss games against the Los Angeles Clippers and Utah. In 21 games since being traded to Dallas from Boston, Rondo has averaged 9.2 points and 6.5 assists.

Paid Pittsburgh second baseman Neil Walker and Oakland pitcher Jarrod Parker took their salary cases to arbitration in what could develop into a winter with the most hearings since 2001. A day after the Miami Marlins beat pitcher Mat Latos in the first decision of the year, infielder Danny Valencia defeated Toronto and will be paid $1,675,000 rather than the Blue Jays’ offer of $1.2 million. In addition to the four players who already have appeared before three-person arbitration panels, 21 players are scheduled for hearings through Feb. 20. Valencia batted .258 last year with four homers and 30 RBIs for the Kansas City Royals and the Blue Jays.

Signed Pitcher Danny Duffy agreed to a one-year contract with the Kansas City Royals worth $2,425,000, avoiding a salary arbitration heading. The 26-year-old lefty was 9-12 with a 2.53 ERA in 25 starts and six relief appearances last year for the A.L. champions and held opponents to a .209 average.