NHL

NEW YORK (AP) — Players from the National Hockey League are Olympic bound. A deal has been reached that will send the world's best players to Sochi, Russia, next February.

The NHL won’t only look different next year – it will also sound different.

NEWARK, N.J. (AP) — New Jersey forward Ilya Kovalchuk is retiring from the NHL and returning to Russia.

TORONTO (AP) — Defensemen Scott Niedermayer and Chris Chelios, along with forward Brendan Shanahan have been picked for the Hockey Hall of Fame.

Bryan Bickell and Dave Bolland scored within 17 seconds of each other late in the third period, and the Chicago Blackhawks beat the Boston Bruins, 3-2, in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Finals on Monday night to win their second championship in four seasons.

So while we are almost done with June, and basketball, and hockey seasons are done, or almost done; I figure it is great time to do a list of top five Minnesota sports related things you need to watch for for the rest of 2013 calender year. The list goes from what will happen first to the last event that will happen in the year...

So while we are almost done with June, and basketball, and hockey seasons are done, or almost done; I figure it is great time to do a list of top five Minnesota sports related things you need to watch for for the rest of 2013 calender year. The list goes from what will happen first to the last event that will happen in the year...

The Stanley Cup Finals begin Wednesday night in Chicago when the Blackhawks face the Boston Bruins in Game 1 of the NHL's championship series. If Chicago loses, its fans may storm the offices of the city of nearby Park Ridge, Ill. in protest because the suburb's leaders obviously don't understand NHL playoff superstitions.

The Chicago Blackhawks face the Boston Bruins in the best-of-seven Stanley Cup Finals beginning on Wednesday night in Chicago. Here's a preview of the series that will decide the NHL's championship:

Two of the NHL's "original six" franchises will meet in the Stanley Cup Finals for the first time since 1979. The Boston Bruins, representing the Eastern Conference, will face the Western Conference-champs, the Chicago Blackhawks, with Game 1 starting at 8 p.m. EST Wednesday night.