Inquirer.com – Zurich DR

Category: Associated Press

  • Putin, Zelensky speak with Trump by phone as drone strikes kill 2 in Russia

    Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky each spoke by phone with U.S. President Donald Trump on Sunday, as Trump marked his 80th birthday and the war in Ukraine remained a flashpoint ahead of this week’s G7 summit.

    Putin’s call with Trump lasted just under an hour, according to Russian presidential aide Yuri Ushakov, who briefed reporters afterward.

    On Ukraine, Ushakov said Trump emphasized the need to end hostilities and stated his readiness to influence European allies and Kyiv toward that goal, including at the upcoming G7 summit.

    Trump also said that recent strikes on civilian targets in Russia complicate a settlement — though the White House has not confirmed that, nor commented on the call — and said that ending the war quickly could open the door to “a truly new quality of U.S.-Russian relations,” Ushakov quoted him as saying.

    Putin, for his part, argued that attacks on Russian civilian infrastructure by Kyiv would not change Ukraine’s position on the battlefield, and said that if Zelensky wants a meeting with him, “let him come to Moscow,” according to Ushakov.

    U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner are expected to travel to Russia soon, Ushakov said.

    The leaders also discussed Iran, where Trump said a U.S. agreement with Tehran was close and that he hoped the results of the talks could be made public Sunday, Ushakov said.

    Zelensky said in a statement on Telegram Sunday that he had a “wonderful conversation” with Trump.

    Beyond congratulating Trump on his birthday, the Ukrainian president said he thanked the U.S. president for supporting Ukraine.

    He said they discussed “what could help bring peace closer now,” without providing details. Zelensky also informed Trump about how Ukraine’s position along the eastern front line has improved and strengthened.

    “We agreed to discuss more during our meeting at the G7 summit,” he said.

    The calls came as Trump prepared to mark his birthday with a UFC fight on the White House lawn Sunday evening, an event without precedent in American history. Once it concludes, Trumpwas set to fly overnight to France for the G7 summit, where Ukraine is expected to be a major topic of discussion Tuesday and Zelensky is due to join the gathering.

    Russia’s war in Ukraine has long frustrated Trump, who as a candidate claimed he could end the conflict within 24 hours of taking office. He has since stopped making such claims and tends to pivot away from the topic when pressed. He has also grown increasingly vexed by the war between Israel and Iran, which has driven up gas prices, rattled financial markets, and stoked concerns about inflation.

    The diplomatic exchanges came against the backdrop of continued fighting. Ukrainian drone attacks killed one person and wounded nine others overnight in a residential building in the regional capital of Russia’s Oryol region, Gov. Andrei Klychkov said Sunday. Another drone attack killed one person Sunday in Russia’s Bryansk region, local authorities said.

    A separate drone strike hit fuel storage facilities in Russia’s Yaroslavl region, around 440 miles from the Ukrainian border, sparking fires. Zelensky said the strike had hit “an oil facility that was important for the reserve of the aggressor state.”

    Ukraine has stepped up attacks on Russian oil and gas infrastructure in recent months, arguing the sector funds Moscow’s invasion.

  • Deal is reached to end Iran war and Trump orders stop to US naval blockade

    ISLAMABAD — The United States and Iran have reached an initial agreement to end their war and open the Strait of Hormuz, offering relief to the Gulf region and global economy more than three months since fighting began.

    Details of the deal were not immediately released and Iran signaled implementation would not start until the signing, which key mediator Pakistan said would occur Friday in Switzerland. It was expected to extend the tenuous ceasefire reached in April so that negotiators can try to resolve thorny issues such as Iran’s nuclear program and related sanctions.

    There was no immediate word from Israel, which together with the U.S. started the war on Feb. 28 but has expressed skepticism about the negotiations.

    But even as it became clear the parties still have days to influence what lies ahead, the announcements had an air of relief.

    “Congratulations to all!” U.S. President Donald Trump wrote on social media, adding: “I hereby fully authorize the toll free opening of the Strait of Hormuz, and, simultaneously herewith, authorize the immediate removal of the United States Naval blockade,” imposed in retaliation for Iran’s grip on the crucial waterway.

    He soon hedged, however, saying the strait wouldn’t open until Friday’s signing. The U.S. previously said it would ease its blockade of Iranian ports as the strait reopens, and would agree to relax sanctions to allow Iran to sell more of its oil and strengthen its battered economy.

    Iran’s deputy foreign minister, Kazem Gharibabadi, confirmed the agreement on state television but said Iran would not start implementing it until it was signed on Friday. He said the deal followed talks with Qatar, another mediator.

    Qatari mediators later left Tehran following 17 hours of negotiations, said an official briefed on the developments who spoke on condition of anonymity due to sensitivity of the talks. Separate preparatory meetings with each side will take place in Doha this week, the official said.

    After months of fighting, a ‘critical step’ is taken to end the war

    “This represents a critical step towards the peaceful settlement of the conflict,” the spokesperson for the United Nations secretary-general said of the deal and framework for further negotiations.

    Pakistan first announced the deal after a day in which Israel, sidelined from the negotiations, attacked Beirut’s southern suburbs while pursuing the Iranian-backed Hezbollah. Iran’s deputy foreign minister hinted at the tensions that caused, saying “our armed forces were fully prepared to give a decisive response to Israel’s actions.”

    Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said “both sides have declared the immediate and permanent termination of military operations on all fronts, including in Lebanon,” adding that mediators this week will facilitate meetings to “lay the foundation for the technical talks.”

    There was no immediate comment from Israel, which had criticized the emerging deal. Iran wanted a ceasefire deal to include Lebanon, where Israel has pushed its invasion deeper than at any point in over a quarter-century.

    Iranian state TV later cited the secretariat of the Supreme National Security Council saying the war on all fronts “will end immediately and permanently beginning tonight” — but that the U.S. blockade “will be terminated immediately and in full.”

    It was not clear who from Iran would sign the deal on Friday. U.S. Vice President JD Vance told Fox News the White House was still figuring out who would attend: “I certainly plan to be there, but it’s possible the president himself could be there.”

    The deal came under criticism even in the final hours

    Broader negotiations on outstanding issues like Iran’s nuclear program would continue over the next 60 days, two senior Pakistani officials said earlier Sunday, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the matter publicly. If the sides fail to reach a resolution within that time, the timeline could be extended.

    The deal likely returns the region to a status that existed before the war, but with thousands of people dead and Iran wielding a new source of negotiating pressure with its ability to influence shipping in the strait. The waterway is crucial to significant shipments of oil, natural gas and related products like fertilizer, and its effective closure rocked the global economy.

    Even with a deal, it will take months for oil and gas supplies to flow freely enough for the world’s needs to be met because shipping and insurance companies want to be confident the agreement will last, energy experts said.

    Of the stated targets by the U.S. and Israel when they launched the war on Feb. 28 with strikes that killed Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Tehran still has a missile program, support for armed proxies in the region like Hezbollah and a stockpile of highly enriched uranium for its nuclear program.

    Khamenei’s son is now supreme leader, though he has not been seen in the public since the war began. His approval was needed for Iran to sign off on the deal.

    There was apparent friction inside Iran in the hours before the announcement, as the government warned that division at home over the deal weakens its negotiating position. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian called it a “disgrace” when someone stands before parliament and calls anyone who negotiates a traitor.

    The emerging deal had been sharply criticized by critics in Trump’s own Republican Party. Some said it did not improve on the terms of the 2015 Iran nuclear deal that Trump withdrew the U.S. from during his first term and still describes as “bad.”

    The central question of Iran’s nuclear program remains

    After the war began, Iran attacked Israel and several Arab Gulf nations with missiles and drones. A ceasefire was reached on April 7. Ten days later, the U.S. military imposed its blockade. A historic face-to-face meeting between Vice President JD Vance and Iranian parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf ended without success.

    Throughout negotiations, Trump alternatively threatened to destroy Iranian infrastructure, even its civilization, and praised the relationship with Iran as “more professional” as his administration sought an exit from the war with midterm U.S. elections coming later this year.

    Iran’s government, with its own tensions around hard-liners as it scrambled to replace several top officials killed in the war, repeatedly expressed wariness of negotiations after rounds of talks last year and early this year ended with U.S. and Israeli attacks.

    Tehran has emphasized that it wanted a deal to focus on ending the war, with discussions put off until later on its nuclear program — the issue at the center of it all.

    Iran has 440.9 kilograms (972 pounds) of uranium that is enriched up to 60% purity, a short, technical step from weapons-grade levels of 90%, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency.

    Iran has long maintained its nuclear program is peaceful and has not publicly committed to giving up the enriched uranium, which is believed to be buried under three nuclear sites that were badly damaged by U.S. strikes last year.

    At times, the U.S. had sought the removal of the enriched uranium from Iran as part of a deal. Russia has offered to take it. At other times, Trump said he wanted the uranium destroyed.

  • The NBA’s Wemby era is clearly underway. But he’s still waiting for his first NBA title

    SAN ANTONIO — Victor Wembanyama had to watch the visiting team become champions, again.

    The Wemby era of the NBA is fully underway, with the 7-foot-4 French star unanimously winning the Defensive Player of the Year award this season, finishing third in the Most Valuable Player balloting and making first-team All-NBA for the first of what could be many, many times if all goes according to his plan.

    But the ultimate moment has escaped his grasp for the second time in three years. In 2024, he tearfully watched the U.S. celebrate winning Olympic gold at the Paris Olympics — and now, he relived that moment by seeing the New York Knicks celebrating their first championship in 53 years by winning Game 5 of the NBA Finals in San Antonio on Saturday night.

    “This is the biggest lesson of my life, the biggest learning moment,” the 22-year-old Wembanyama said. “I can’t tell you exactly what the lesson is, but we’re learning from that, for sure. I’m learning more than any other time in my life before.”

    His numbers in the finals: 26 points, 11.2 rebounds. 3.6 blocks per game. They were good, just not good enough.

    And his series, fairly or unfairly, will also be remembered for some mistakes: The turnover that led to Jalen Brunson’s go-ahead free throw in New York’s Game 2 win (a game where Wembanyama missed a jump shot to win at the buzzer); and missing a pair of crucial free throws with 1:47 left in Game 4, the one where the Spurs wasted a 29-point lead and lost by one in what became the biggest collapse in finals history. The Spurs wasted double-digit leads in all four losses, including a 16-point cushion in what became the season finale.

    “The margin of error is very thin,” Wembanyama said. “Our domination stints are absolute. We absolutely dominated for most of the series. But our errors, our mistakes, are punished so hard that we can’t have ups and downs like this. … The ups are OK. The downs are the reason we lost.”

    It’s only Year 3 for Wemby. It’s not like every star wins right away.

    It took Michael Jordan seven seasons to win his first championship. LeBron James needed nine years. Jerry West needed 12 years for his one and only title. John Stockton and Karl Malone never got one. Charles Barkley, Chris Paul and Carmelo Anthony didn’t get one, either.

    “He’s definitely the future of this league, man,” Knicks legend Larry Johnson said during the series when asked about Wembanyama. “He’s a heck of a ballplayer.”

    Wembanyama knows the history, knows that it took some of the greatest to ever touch a ball several years to win a title.

    Doesn’t mean he likes it.

    “It’s painful. It’s painful,” Wembanyama said. “But I’m not running away from that. I’m using it to fuel me. … I’m not satisfied with not winning. But as I said, this is the biggest lesson of my life. As a team, there’s no better experience than what we just lived.”

    His numbers are like almost nothing the game has ever seen before. There have been four seasons in NBA history where someone had 150 blocks, 150 assists and 100 3-pointers. Chet Holmgren did it for Oklahoma City in 2023-24, and the other three instances are all from Wembanyama — who has hit those totals in each of his first three seasons.

    “I think for a lot of people, this team seems to be ahead of schedule,” NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said Saturday on NBA TV. “I don’t think they feel that way. I’m amazed at Victor. Not just his play on the floor, but he’s such a curious young man. He’s a pleasure to talk to. He’s very worldly. I mean, he’s got amazing interests off the floor. He’s really dedicated to his craft and he’s got such a bright future ahead of him.”

  • After 53 years, the New York Knicks are NBA champions. And the wait sure seemed worth it

    SAN ANTONIO — Knowing New York had waited 53 years to see the Knicks hoist the NBA championship trophy, owner James Dolan didn’t even wait to be handed the 30-pound gold-plated prize.

    He grabbed it and lifted it skyward with a yell.

    “I want to say something to New York,” Dolan shouted. “Hey New York! I’m sorry it took so long! But here we are, and hopefully it won’t take that long again!”

    The New York Knicks are champions of the NBA for the first time since 1973, beating the San Antonio Spurs in five games for this title. The clincher came Saturday night in a 94-90 victory, the Knicks’ fourth comeback win of the series.

    Some will say it’s the first “major” professional sports championship for New York in more than 14 years; that would be true when counting only Major League Baseball, the NFL, the NHL, and the NBA, though it would be wrong to ignore the New York Liberty’s run to the 2024 WNBA title and New York City FC winning the MLS Cup in 2021.

    But as far as the teams that have been part of the city’s fabric for generations and generations, yes, this 14-year drought is finally over. The New York Giants won the Super Bowl in 2012, capping the 2011 season.

    The Yankees — the most decorated team in U.S. major pro sports history — haven’t won a World Series since 2009. The Mets haven’t brought a World Series title to New York since 1986. The Rangers last hoisted the Stanley Cup in 1994, the Islanders in 1983. The New York Jets haven’t won a Super Bowl since 1969.

    None of that matters, at least not right now. The Knicks — who won 13 consecutive games at one point in this playoff run and rallied from 29 points down to win Game 4 of the finals at MSG — are the toast of the town.

    “Of course I’ve never seen anything like it, because it’d never happened before,” NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said of the Game 4 comeback in an interview on NBA TV on Saturday. “But it’s been amazing.”

    The Amazin’ Knicks, indeed.

    A third title, finally

    It took them 80 years — the Knicks won the first game in NBA history in 1946, three years before what was then the Basketball Association of America started being known as the National Basketball Association — but the franchise has now become the ninth that can say it has at least three championships.

    Boston has 18, the Los Angeles Lakers have 17, Golden State has seven, Chicago has six, San Antonio has five, and Philadelphia, Detroit and Miami all have three.

    Welcome to the club, New York.

    “I enjoy watching these guys,” Knicks legend Larry Johnson said. ”The Garden is back. … It’s back like when we played and made our little run. The city is behind us.”

    It’s a franchise that has gone through 24 different coaches and more than 400 players since what was, until now, the most recent championship season. Some of the game’s biggest superstars called Madison Square Garden home and couldn’t end the title drought, names like Patrick Ewing, Allan Houston, Bernard King, and Carmelo Anthony.

    The Knicks lost a Game 7 in the 1994 finals to Hakeem Olajuwon and Houston, then made a miracle run to the 1999 finals in a shortened season only to lose to San Antonio in five games — the first of what became five championships for Gregg Popovich and the Spurs.

    “We didn’t get it done. … I always say the third time is the charm,” former Knicks guard John Starks said.

    Starks was right. It took the Knicks 27 years to get back to the finals, had the Spurs again standing in their way, and to fully flip the script, it was New York prevailing in five games.

    MSG, a banner is coming

    And finally, the world’s most famous arena — which has raised banners for Billy Joel, Elton John, and Harry Styles more recently than it had hoisted one for the Knicks — will be adding to the collection swaying from the rafters. If it follows form from the others, the banner will only have the Knicks logo, then “2025-26 World Champions” beneath that.

    A simple message. Getting to the place where the Knicks could say those words again, that wasn’t so simple.

    “There are a couple of franchises that are pretty iconic just because of the history that they have, the location that they’re in, sometimes even the building that they’re in,” said Knicks coach Mike Brown, who won this title in his first season with the club. “New York is definitely one of the few that you could say that to in all three facets.

    “Everybody goes through their ups and downs. I don’t really think much about the tough times that they had, because everybody has tough times, including individuals. You just want to try the best you can to be a part of whatever you can to bring joy to the city, to the organization. At the end of the day, the chips are going to fall how they fall. I feel blessed, fortunate, lucky, to be a part of what is going on now.”

    It is, to put it mildly, an interesting organization. Dolan — who rarely speaks publicly — isn’t afraid of clashes, even including ones with former Knicks greats like Charles Oakley, who was at road games in this title run but has remained away from MSG for years. Leon Rose, the team’s president, typically doesn’t make himself available to reporters either. There is an absolute mystique around the team and how it operates.

    It has not always worked. Over a 25-year stretch that ended with the 2021-22 season — not that long ago — the Knicks had the worst record in the NBA. In the four years since, starting with the acquisition of Jalen Brunson from Dallas, the Knicks have the NBA’s fifth-best record.

    And now, Brunson — the finals MVP — is the best player on the best team in the world.

    “It means the world to me,” Brunson said.

    Start spreadin’ the news …

    And this year, as Frank Sinatra said, the Knicks are king of the hill, top of the heap. Some in the fan base grumbled when the Knicks declined to hang an NBA Cup championship banner after beating San Antonio for the in-season tournament title earlier this season. Turns out, the Knicks were just waiting for something better.

    So, the 53-year wait is over. It was a very different league, and a very different game, in 1973.

    There were 17 teams in the NBA that season, barely half of the 30 that there are now. Teams called Buffalo, Baltimore, Kansas City-Omaha, and Seattle home then; the league has expanded many times since, adding 13 teams in nine different states, plus Canada and the District of Columbia.

    The top salary in the league then was about $380,000, or roughly $2.9 million in today’s dollars. There was no 3-point line then, no multi-billion-dollar television deal, no international players.

    The Knicks flew home on a United Airlines flight from the 1973 title clincher in Inglewood, Calif., and officials at Kennedy Airport expected what was then called a “rabid” crowd of fans present to greet the plane. They braced for “hundreds” of people that day.

    This celebration might be a little bigger.

    “To have the fans that we have in New York City and be able to bring home a championship after all these years is absolutely amazing,” Brown said. “It’s a surreal feeling.”

  • Jalen Brunson pours in 45 points as Knicks close out Spurs for first NBA title since 1973

    SAN ANTONIO — Jalen Brunson and the Comeback Knicks did it again. And now they’re the Champion Knicks.

    For the first time in 53 years, New York rules the NBA. Brunson scored 45 points, including 13 straight for New York in the fourth quarter, and the Knicks beat the San Antonio Spurs 94-90 in Game 5 of the NBA Finals on Saturday night.

    The Knicks won the series 4-1, rallying from double-digit deficits in all four of those victories. The deficit was 16 on Saturday night. Brunson and the Knicks were never fazed.

    Brunson, fittingly, closed with a flourish. He set a Knicks record for points in a finals game; it had been 38 by Willis Reed against the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 3 of the 1970 series. It now belongs to the left-handed point guard who changed the franchise’s fortunes when he arrived four years ago.

    Mikal Bridges and Josh Hart — the other two parts of the “Nova Knicks” trio that also includes Brunson, three players who were NCAA champions at Villanova and teamed up in New York to try to do the same — combined to score 27 points. Bridges had 14, Hart 13.

    Brunson won NCAA crowns twice with Villanova — both in Texas, the 2016 one in Houston and the 2018 one in San Antonio, just a few miles away from the arena that the Spurs call home.

    A Texas three-step of titles, and this one was surely the sweetest of all.

    Dylan Harper scored 25 for the Spurs, who got 19 points, 14 rebounds and five blocked shots from Victor Wembanyama.

    The Knicks improved to 4-0 in closeout opportunities this season, winning them all on the road. It didn’t feel like the road, though — not with thousands of New York faithful having made the trip to Texas to see a moment 53 years in the making.

    New York got to the brink of this title by rallying from 29 points down in Game 4 to win 107-106 on OG Anunoby’s tip-in with 1.2 seconds left on Wednesday night. It was the largest comeback in NBA Finals history and the biggest comeback in any game this season, regular season or playoffs.

    By comparison, then, a 16-point rally in this one seemed easy.

  • Former Sixer James Harden arrested in Houston on misdemeanor charge

    Former Sixer James Harden arrested in Houston on misdemeanor charge

    Cleveland Cavaliers guard James Harden was arrested on Saturday in Houston on a misdemeanor charge of unlawful carrying of a weapon in a motor vehicle, according to the Harris County District Clerk’s Office.

    Harden was arrested at 3:41 a.m. and booked just before 5 a.m., then posted $100 bond and was released from police custody, according to charging documents, which said he had a handgun in plain view that was not in a holster.

    His arraignment is scheduled for June 22, according to the clerk’s office website. Harden is listed as a Houston resident in court documents.

    “The Cleveland Cavaliers are aware of the arrest of James Harden this morning and are in the process of gathering additional information,” the team said in a statement. “We are in contact with James and his representation and will continue to monitor developments as they become available. At this time, we will have no further comment.”

    A message sent to Harden’s representatives from the Associated Press seeking comment was not immediately returned.

    Harden, 36, just finished his 17th NBA season and has the right to exercise a $42.3 million option to return to the Cavaliers next season. He indicated when Cleveland’s playoff run ended with a loss to the New York Knicks in the Eastern Conference finals that he would like to remain with the team, which would suggest he’s willing to forgo the option in favor of a longer contract with the Cavaliers.

    Harden is an 11-time All-Star and an eight-time All-NBA selection who earned MVP honors in the 2017-18 season while playing for the Houston Rockets and is averaging a career 24 points, 7.3 assists, and 5.6 rebounds. After being acquired in the Ben Simmons trade, he played for the Sixers from 2022 to 2023 and averaged 21 points, 10.6 assists, and 6.4 rebounds in 79 games before he was traded to the Los Angeles Clippers on Oct. 31, 2023.

  • Olympic gold medal-Stanley Cup double is at stake for Americans in the final

    Ken Morrow liked to consider himself the answer of a trivia question as the only hockey player who won an Olympic gold medal and hoisted the Stanley Cup in the same year. He was part of the 1980 U.S. “Miracle on Ice” team and then joined the New York Islanders for their first of four titles in a row.

    A half-dozen Canadians have done it since the NHL started sending players to the Olympics, but at this moment, more Americans have walked on the moon than accomplished what Morrow did. He is the only one.

    That will soon change, no matter how the Cup final ends. After the U.S. won gold at the Olympics for the first time in 46 years, Carolina’s Jaccob Slavin is one victory away from joining Morrow, unless Vegas wins Games 6 and 7 to put Jack Eichel and Noah Hanifin in that exclusive club.

    “I’ve had my 46 years,” Morrow told The Associated Press by phone Friday. “I’m always one that likes to see new people win the Cup, guys get a chance to do something that they’ll remember the rest of their lives. And for whoever does it this year, yes, I think it’s great.”

    Morrow won the Stanley Cup four times in a row as part of that Islanders dynasty. Eichel is the only U.S. player in the final with a Cup ring, and he had a major part in the Golden Knights’ championship run in 2023.

    After helping the U.S. win gold in Milan in February, Eichel says there are similarities and differences to those journeys.

    “One’s nine, 10 months; one’s two weeks,” Eichel said. “One of them is winner-take-all of just one game at a time. These are seven-game series, so it’s different in that sense. I think from an emotional standpoint and a mentality, I think there’s a lot of similarities: just the investment in winning and the feeling in the room and everything that comes with it.”

    The single-elimination element is a good way of thinking of playoff hockey, Eichel said, though Hanifin pointed out that it is drastically different preparing for a game at a time at the Olympics than enduring the ups and downs of a postseason.

    “When you’re playing seven-game series, you can kind of build over time and if you hit a little bit of a setback or some adversity, you can kind of learn from it and build and come back better,” Hanifin said. “Whereas Olympics, when you get into those medal rounds, it’s a one-and-done situation, so it’s different in that regard.”

    If the Hurricanes win, it would be some measure of retribution for Seth Jarvis, who played for Canada in the final and lost to the U.S. in overtime on Jack Hughes’ winning goal.

    When Carolina had him, Slavin and bronze medalist Sebastian Aho pose for a photo with their medals in their Olympic jerseys, Jarvis in a behind-the-scenes video quipped about reliving his nightmares and brought up the stuffed animal versions of an Olympic mascot that IOC officials gave to a group of players after losing the biggest game of their lives.

    Before the start of the final, Jarvis acknowledged the events are two separate things.

    “Obviously, losing in the gold medal is going to suck forever,” Jarvis said. “But now I get a chance to be a winner and win something big here with a group of guys that I’ve been grinding with for five years, been through the ups and downs of it and people that I just really care about.”

    Two more losses would put Jarvis back in the same spot, albeit without another stuffie. One more defeat by the Golden Knights would mean losing twice in a final this year for Mitch Marner, Shea Theodore and Mark Stone.

    Before the series began, Slavin was working hard to keep his brain from drifting to the possibility.

    “It crosses my mind,” Slavin said. “But we’ve got to go out and do a job first, so not trying to give it too much thought.”

    In the nearly five decades since Morrow completed the Olympic gold-Stanley Cup double, the entire situation has changed. The NHL has participated in the Olympics six times since 1998, so players are already professionals.

    Morrow at age 23 went less than a week and a half between beating the Soviet Union in the “Miracle on Ice” in Lake Placid, New York, visiting the White House, having his first practice with the Islanders and making his NHL debut.

    “I was trying to earn a living,” Morrow said. “I had to kind of really change focus quickly into trying to earn a job with the New York Islanders, and it wasn’t a sure thing for me when I first came to them right after the Olympics. Am I going to be able to play in the league? Those were questions that I was facing in trying to make a living. And these guys certainly didn’t have that facing them after the Olympics.”

    They just had to get back to doing their job, which was a challenge in itself. Vegas and Carolina each finished atop its division and got through three rounds of the playoffs.

    That gave Eichel, Hanifin and Slavin an opportunity to join Morrow, Steve Yzerman and Brendan Shanahan from Detroit in 2002, Jonathan Toews, Brent Seabrook and Duncan Keith from Chicago 2010, and Drew Doughty from Los Angeles in 2014 in the history books.

    “For myself, it’s been a pretty surreal year: Winning gold was awesome, and then having the chance to play for a Stanley Cup is awesome,” Slavin said. “I take it as a blessing and just thankful for it.”

  • Trump, Pakistan say Iran deal could be signed Sunday

    ISLAMABAD — Key mediator Pakistan on Saturday said a deal to end the Iran war was closer than ever and U.S. President Donald Trump asserted it would be “signed tomorrow,” while Iran made some of its most optimistic statements yet but indicated a bit more time was needed.

    Trump said the Strait of Hormuz would open immediately after the signing.

    Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said a deal was expected to be finalized within 24 hours. Each side was expected to sign electronically. Pakistan’s foreign ministry said the signing ceremony was scheduled for Sunday but did not provide details.

    Iran foreign ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei in statements carried by state media said the signing “will not happen tomorrow,” but “the likelihood of finalizing the memorandum of understanding in the coming days is high.”

    A tenuous ceasefire has been in place since April 7. Trump has asserted multiple times in recent weeks the countries were on the cusp of a deal.

    Iran has long expressed wariness in negotiations, pointing out that previous talks with the U.S. last year and early this year ended with attacks by the U.S. and Israel.

    Trump to discuss demining the strait at G7 summit

    Trump was expected to discuss demining the Strait of Hormuz during the Group of Seven summit that starts Monday.

    A senior U.S. official, who briefed journalists on condition of anonymity under rules set by the White House, said Trump planned to meet on the G7 sidelines with the leaders of Egypt, Qatar, and United Arab Emirates to discuss efforts to wind down the war.

    G7 members Britain and France have expressed interest in assisting with demining once the conflict is paused.

    It was not clear how many mines are in the strait that Iran has effectively controlled since shortly after the war began, virtually shutting down oil and natural gas shipments from the Persian Gulf. The U.S. has blockaded Iranian ports in response.

    The nuclear issue remains elusive

    Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson said the memorandum of understanding under discussion was focused on ending the war and “at this stage, it has been decided that there will be no discussion of the nuclear issue.”

    Iran’s nuclear program and highly enriched uranium have long been at the center of tensions with the U.S. and Israel and an international source of concern.

    Trump on social media asserted that “when all is calm,” the U.S. would go in and “downblend and destroy” the enriched uranium in Iran or in the U.S.

    The apparent breakthrough in negotiations came after Iran exchanged fire with the U.S. and Israel earlier in the week, threatening to rupture the ceasefire and push the Middle East back into full-scale war.

    Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi posted on X on Friday that an agreement “has never been closer.” Trump on Thursday claimed significant progress in negotiations, hours after he threatened to seize Iran’s oil industry.

    Iran’s former supreme leader will be buried in July

    Iran’s state-run television said funeral ceremonies for former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, killed in the war’s opening attack, will take place in July.

    The funeral, burial, and farewell events for Khamenei will occur between July 4-9 during Muharram, a traditional period of mourning in the Shiite Muslim calendar.

    Khamenei is succeeded by his son, Mojtaba, who is considered less compromising and has not been seen publicly since the war began.

    Funeral ceremonies are expected to begin in Tehran and move to Qom, a stronghold of many senior Shiite clerics, then to Mashhad, Khamenei’s birthplace. He’ll be buried there at the Imam Reza Shrine, considered the holiest place among Shiite devotees.

    Khamenei remolded the Islamic Republic following the death in 1989 of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the fiery, charismatic ideologue who led the overthrow of the shah and installed rule by Shiite Muslim clerics.

    Khamenei ruled far longer than Khomeini. He greatly expanded the Shiite clerical class and built the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard into the most important body underpinning his rule. The Guard became a military and business behemoth, the country’s most elite force and head of its ballistic missile arsenal — a key target for Israel and the U.S. in the war.

  • Trump’s name gone from the Kennedy Center’s facade

    WASHINGTON — The curtain may have come down for President Donald Trump at the Kennedy Center but the tarp stays up for now.

    Matt Floca, executive director and chief operating officer of the performing arts venue, told a federal court Saturday that the institution had complied with an order to remove Trump’s name from the facade. In a filing, Floca said the board of trustees and the center had removed “all physical signage on the Kennedy Center building and grounds, including the front portico, that purports to rename the Kennedy Center after President Trump.”

    But for onlookers who have gathered on the plaza in front of the center over the past day hoping to witness a dramatic moment symbolizing the limits of Trump’s power, it was virtually impossible to see whether the signage was gone. A tarp hung over the scaffolding constructed for workers to perform that task. It was unclear when the tarp might be removed to reveal the original lettering that had endured for decades: “The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts.”

    A reporter was able to peer through a slight opening in the tarp, which was pulled tightly against the wall, and saw that the letters for Trump’s name were no longer affixed to the building.

    By the end, the Kennedy Center’s leadership had dug in against a federal judge’s order to erase Trump’s name from the building. Two courts rejected the institution’s last-minute request to retain Trump’s name pending an appeal. After severe thunderstorms raked Washington on Friday evening, the Kennedy Center sought one more extension before complying with a noon Saturday deadline.

    Those who pushed for the scrubbing of Trump’s name were in a celebratory mood. Rep. Joyce Beatty (D.,Ohio), an ex officio member of the board who sued to remove references to the president from the building and the center’s operations, was spotted in the plaza late Friday and Saturday morning. She posted a video to social media that purported to show her performing the “Trump dance” in one of the Kennedy Center’s great halls.

    “Today’s victory is the beginning of returning the Kennedy Center to the American people,” Beatty said in a statement. “The rule of law prevailed, and that is worth celebrating.”

    Leo Bartholomaus, a recent graduate of Syracuse University who lives in Virginia, said he was walking by the Kennedy Center on Friday afternoon after visiting the National Mall to see events related to this weekend’s UFC match at the White House. He said he was not happy that Trump added his name to the building.

    “My grandmother had a big love of the arts,” he said. “I’ve been here to see The Lion King. I wasn’t a fan of Donald Trump putting his name on it. I thought it was better as the Kennedy Center.”

    Closing an unusual chapter

    The removal of Trump’s name closes one of the more unusual chapters in the history of the Kennedy Center, which began construction in 1964 and was dedicated to the memory of the slain president, Democrat John F. Kennedy. At what is typically one of the few relatively nonpartisan spaces in Washington, Trump has wielded tremendous influence over the venue during his second term.

    Though he rarely discussed the Kennedy Center during his 2024 campaign, Trump moved quickly to oust the institution’s leadership when he returned to office in January 2025 and replaced it with a board of trustees that named him chairman. His name was quickly added to the building.

    While the removal of his name marks a setback for Trump, he is moving forward with plans to reshape the physical landscape of the nation’s capital in ways that have few modern parallels.

    He demolished the East Wing of the White House and is building a controversial ballroom in its place. He remodeled the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool and plans extensive renovations of a golf course in East Potomac Park, moves that could significantly reduce the public’s access to running and biking paths. He is also moving forward with a triumphal arch that will sit near Arlington National Cemetery across the Potomac River in Virginia.

    Indeed, as Trump’s name was being removed from the Kennedy Center, the South Lawn of the White House has been transformed into a venue for a UFC match intended to celebrate the 250th anniversary of American independence but also coinciding with Trump’s birthday on Sunday.

    Questions linger about the Kennedy Center’s future

    Back at the Kennedy Center, there are many questions about the institution’s future. The same May court decision that ordered Trump’s name to be removed from the building also blocked a planned two-year closure for renovations that was set to begin next month.

    The Kennedy Center’s calendar for the weeks ahead include performances of Moulin Rouge! The Musical and Bluey’s Big Play. Comedian Bill Maher is to be awarded the Mark Twain Award for American Humor during a ceremony on June 28.

    But little is scheduled for the stages beyond that and, after substantially reducing staff, it is unclear how quickly the Kennedy Center could build out a robust performance list. Trump, angered by the court’s order to remove his name, has said he would turn the Kennedy Center over to Congress and has suggested it might simply shutter because of public safety concerns.

    In its unsuccessful appeal on Friday seeking a pause on the order removing Trump’s name, the Kennedy Center’s leadership argued, in terms that seemed similar to the president’s speech patterns, that the lower court was interfering with needed renovations.

    “The District Court is not allowing us to close in order to properly fix up and repair the Building, including potentially life threatening structural damage like beams and parking garage ceilings that are rusted, and in serious danger of falling onto people below,” according to the appeal. “Indeed, total collapse!”

    The institution also suggested that the president’s name could return to the building if the Kennedy Center later wins its appeal.

    If the court denied the venue’s request for a pause, the Kennedy Center argued it would “be forced to squander time and money — by both removing the signage and then potentially returning it after appeal.”

  • Ford and Honda issue recalls for thousands of vehicles

    Ford and Honda issue recalls for thousands of vehicles

    Ford is recalling more than 250,000 vehicles that were incorrectly repaired under a previous recall meant to fix a problem that caused the engine to stall while driving.

    The recall includes 255,404 Ford Focus automobiles, model years 2012-2018. Ford said the canister purge valve may malfunction, causing the engine to stall unexpectedly while driving, increasing the risk of crash and injury.

    To fix the problem, dealers will provide a powertrain software update free of charge.

    Owner notification letters are expected to be mailed July 6. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 866-436-7332.

    Ford’s number for this recall is 26S40. The National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration’s number for this recall is 26V369. The original NHTSA recall number for this issue is 18V735.

    Vehicle identification numbers involved in this recall will become searchable on NHTSA.gov on July 6.

    Earlier this week Honda announced a recall of more than 800,000 vehicles because rear suspension components may fail and cause drivers to lose control, increasing the chances of a crash or injury.

    American Honda Motor Co. said the recall covers certain 2016-2022 Honda Pilot, 2017-2023 Ridgeline, 2019-2023 Passport, and 2014-2020 Acura MDX vehicles. The recall includes 880,514 vehicles that were sold in Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia and Wisconsin.

    The problem centers around the rear subframe, which can corrode at suspension mounting points and cause the rear suspension to fail. Honda estimates that just 1% of the vehicles listed have the defect.

    Honda has had no warranty claims and no reports of an injury or death related to the problem.

    As a remedy, Honda and Acura dealers will inspect the rear subframe and install a reinforcement kit if necessary, or repair or replace the rear subframe components at no cost to vehicle owners.

    Owner notification letters are expected to be mailed July 7.

    The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s campaign number for the recall is 26V367000. Honda’s numbers for this recall are AOU and AOT. Vehicle Identification Numbers applicable to this recall will be searchable on NHTSA.gov beginning June 10.

    Owners may contact Honda’s customer service at 888-234-2138.