MILAN — Juraj Slafkovsky scored twice to pick up where he left off four years ago, fellow NHL player Dalibor Dvorsky got the tiebreaking goal with less than 13 minutes left, and Slovakia pulled off an upset in the first men’s hockey game of the Milan Cortina Olympics by beating Finland 4-1 on Wednesday.
Slafkovsky, the MVP at the 2022 Beijing Games who now plays for the Montreal Canadiens, scored the first goal of this tournament less than eight minutes in, skating through Finland’s defense and sliding the puck past a helpless Juuse Saros. After Dvorsky scored in the third period to put Slovakia ahead, Slafkovsky wired a shot past Saros on the power play and pumped his fist to the crowd.
He also scored the first two goals of the opener in Beijing against Finland, though that came in a 6-2 loss. Slafkovsky finished with seven goals while helping Slovakia win bronze, the country’s first Olympic hockey medal.
Slafkovsky and his teammates got off to a surprisingly better start in Milan after it looked on paper like they were overmatched. Slovakia dressed seven NHL players, while all but one on Finland’s roster plays in the league.
Goaltender Samuel Hlavaj had a lot to do with the initial underdog story on the ice, fending off one onslaught after another. Finland outshot Slovakia 18-5 in the first period and 39-25 overall, and the Minnesota Wild prospect finished with 38 saves.
Unable to watch while the U.S. team he runs was practicing next door, Wild general manager Bill Guerin said “it’s great” that Hlavaj got off to such a strong start at the Olympics.
It was not so good for Saros, the Nashville Predators starter who allowed three goals on 24 shots in the defeat. Finland next plays archrival Sweden on Friday, and it’s possible Vancouver‘s Kevin Lankinen gets the nod, just as he did in replacing Saros in net at the 4 Nations Face-Off a year ago.
Eeli Tolvanen, also a returning Olympian after playing in 2018, scored Finland’s only goal. Adam Ruzicka scored into an empty net to seal it for Slovakia.
The 30-game tournament will conclude with the gold medal final on Feb. 22. The NHL is participating in the Games for the first time since the 2014 Sochi Olympics, ending a long wait for stars from all over the world.
Sweden faces host Italy in the nightcap of Day 1. The tournament favorites get underway Thursday, when the U.S. faces Latvia and Canada takes on Czechia.
PRISTINA, Kosovo — PRISTINA, Kosovo (AP) — Kosovo’s new parliament on Wednesday met for the first time since a December snap election, aiming to approve a new government as soon as possible following more than a yearlong political deadlock in the Balkan country.
Prime Minister Albin Kurti is set for another mandate after his Vetevendosje, or Self-Determination, party won 57 seats in the 120-member parliament. The party is expected to form a coalition government with several ethnic minority groups.
Lawmakers on Wednesday chose former justice minister Albulena Haxhiu as parliament speaker.
The snap ballot on Dec. 28 was scheduled after the Self-Determination party failed to form a government despite winning the most votes in a February 2025 election. This led to a crippling political deadlock throughout last year.
The new parliament’s formation was further delayed by a recount vote over widespread irregularities.
A former Serbian province, Kosovo declared independence in 2008 following a 1998-99 war that ended after a U.S.-led NATO intervention. Serbia does not recognize the split and tensions have simmered ever since.
The new parliament must first approve this year’s budget that has been delayed because of the political crisis. Lawmakers also are set to elect a new president in March as current President Vjosa Osmani’s mandate expires in early April.
Prime minister Kurti, 50, came to power in 2021 after also briefly occupying the role in 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic.
A former political prisoner during Serbia’s rule in Kosovo, Kurti has taken a tough stand in talks mediated by the European Union on normalizing relations with Belgrade. Kosovo and Serbia have been told they must normalize ties if they wish to join the 27-nation bloc.
Washington and its allies have recognized Kosovo’s independence while Russia and China have sided with Serbia in the dispute.
___
Associated Press Writer Jovana Gec contributed from Belgrade, Serbia.
After a little less than a year, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard is ending the work of a task force she created to look at big changes to the U.S. intelligence community.Related video above: Gabbard had vocally opposed ‘regime-change wars’ during presidential campaignThe panel known as the Director’s Initiative Group was formed in April and charged with rooting out what Gabbard called the politicization of intelligence gathering. The group also studied ways to reduce spending on intelligence and whether reports on high-profile topics like COVID-19 should be declassified.The group became a lightning rod for criticism of Gabbard, with Democrats and some intelligence insiders questioning whether it would be used to weaken spy agencies and bring them under the control of President Donald Trump.In announcing the end of the group’s work Wednesday, Gabbard said it was always intended to be a temporary effort as she began her work overseeing coordination of the nation’s 18 intelligence agencies. Reuters first reported the winddown.”In less than one year, we’ve brought a historic level of transparency to the intelligence community,” Gabbard said in a statement. “My commitment to transparency, truth, and eliminating politicization and weaponization within the intelligence community remains central to all that we do.”The number and identities of the officers assigned to the group is classified, Gabbard’s office said, adding that they now will return to other agencies to continue the work begun by the group.Gabbard has ushered in big changes to America’s intelligence service, at times using the nation’s spy agencies to back up Trump’s conspiracy theories about the 2016 and 2020 elections.Under Gabbard, the government has revoked the security clearances of dozens of former and current officials as well as declassified documents meant to call into question long-settled judgments about Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election.Her presence at an FBI search of a Georgia election office related to the 2020 election has prompted criticism from Democrats who say she is blurring the traditional lines between foreign intelligence gathering and domestic law enforcement.The CIA also released more information about its investigations into the origins of COVID-19, including a new assessment released last year that found COVID most likely originated in a lab.In August, Gabbard announced plans to reduce the workforce at her office and trim more than $700 million from its annual budget. In May, she fired two top intelligence officials because she determined they opposed Trump.
WASHINGTON —
After a little less than a year, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard is ending the work of a task force she created to look at big changes to the U.S. intelligence community.
Related video above: Gabbard had vocally opposed ‘regime-change wars’ during presidential campaign
The panel known as the Director’s Initiative Group was formed in April and charged with rooting out what Gabbard called the politicization of intelligence gathering. The group also studied ways to reduce spending on intelligence and whether reports on high-profile topics like COVID-19 should be declassified.
The group became a lightning rod for criticism of Gabbard, with Democrats and some intelligence insiders questioning whether it would be used to weaken spy agencies and bring them under the control of President Donald Trump.
In announcing the end of the group’s work Wednesday, Gabbard said it was always intended to be a temporary effort as she began her work overseeing coordination of the nation’s 18 intelligence agencies. Reuters first reported the winddown.
“In less than one year, we’ve brought a historic level of transparency to the intelligence community,” Gabbard said in a statement. “My commitment to transparency, truth, and eliminating politicization and weaponization within the intelligence community remains central to all that we do.”
The number and identities of the officers assigned to the group is classified, Gabbard’s office said, adding that they now will return to other agencies to continue the work begun by the group.
Gabbard has ushered in big changes to America’s intelligence service, at times using the nation’s spy agencies to back up Trump’s conspiracy theories about the 2016 and 2020 elections.
Under Gabbard, the government has revoked the security clearances of dozens of former and current officials as well as declassified documents meant to call into question long-settled judgments about Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election.
Her presence at an FBI search of a Georgia election office related to the 2020 election has prompted criticism from Democrats who say she is blurring the traditional lines between foreign intelligence gathering and domestic law enforcement.
The CIA also released more information about its investigations into the origins of COVID-19, including a new assessment released last year that found COVID most likely originated in a lab.
In August, Gabbard announced plans to reduce the workforce at her office and trim more than $700 million from its annual budget. In May, she fired two top intelligence officials because she determined they opposed Trump.
Farmer Wants A Wifeis coming back! The hit dating show will return for its fourth season on April 21.
This year, however, the series is introducing a twist. For the first time, the show will feature three farmers searching for love instead of four. According to a press release issued Wednesday (Feb. 11), the change is meant to allow viewers to dive deeper into each farmer’s journey.
Braden Pridemore, 26, Brett Maverick, 35, and Sean Cavanaugh, 22, are the three farmers hoping to find love this season. The women vying for their hearts have not yet been announced.
Pridemore is a 26-year-old fifth-generation corn and soybean farmer from Homer, Ill. According to the press release, he works on his family’s 3,000-acre farm, an operation originally built by his grandfather.
Pridemore says he’s looking for a wife who is kind, faith-minded and ready to build a family.
When he’s not farming, he enjoys songwriting and playing guitar at local bars.
Brett Maverick
Maverick is the oldest of this season’s farmers. The 35-year-old horse and cattle farmer is from Savannah, Tenn., where his family owns a 1,000-acre farm. He is currently building his own horse and cattle ranch on the property.
Before turning to farming full-time, Maverick worked as a bull rider before eventually stepping away from the sport to become an entrepreneur. He is now developing both a protein bar company and a tequila brand.
According to the press release, Maverick hopes to find a partner with whom he can build a legacy rooted in love, loyalty and land.
Sean Cavanaugh
Cavanaugh, 22, is from Solvang, Calif., where he works as a farm-to-table farmer on his family’s 22-acre produce farm. The crops grown there help supply his family’s farm-to-table restaurant, The Gathering Table.
According to the press release, Cavanaugh is focused, driven and ready to find something real.
Who will be hosting the show?
Actress Kimberly Williams-Paisley will return as host after debuting in the role during Season 3. Last season also featured a cameo from her husband, country star Brad Paisley, though it has not yet been confirmed whether he will appear in the upcoming season.
Before Williams-Paisley took over hosting duties, country star Jennifer Nettles hosted the show’s first two seasons.
Where can fans watch?
The show returns Tuesday, April 21, at 8PM ET/7PM C on FOX.
In the meantime, fans can catch up on past seasons on Hulu, FOX One, Tubi and through On Demand services. On Demand episodes are available to subscribers of providers including Cox Contour TV, DIRECTV, DISH, Fubo, Hulu + Live TV, Optimum, Spectrum, Verizon FiOS, Xfinity and YouTube TV, among others.
Catch up on which relationships lasted from Season 3.
‘Farmer Wants a Wife’ Season 3 Finale Pictures Include Final Decisions
The Season 3 finale of Farmer Wants a Wife will find all four farmers making a final decision between two women. Jay, Matt, John and Colton will all have to choose who they keep and who goes home during the two-hour finale on Fox on Thursday (May 22 at 8PM ET).
A couple of significant Big Ten results from overtime games on Tuesday night led to a shakeup on the No. 2 seed line in CBS Sports Bracketology. Purdue rose from a No. 3 seed to a No. 2 seed following its 80-77 win at Nebraska, and Illinois dropped from a No. 2 seed to a No. 3 seed following its 92-90 home loss to Wisconsin.
The path to get there was anything but smooth for the Boilermakers, who squandered a 22-point lead in the second half. But the end result was a seventh Quad 1 victory and seventh win over a team projected to be an at-large squad in the CBS Sports Bracketology field.
At 20-4 (10-3 Big Ten), Purdue has ample opportunity down the stretch to continue building its resume. Six of its final seven regular season games are against projected NCAA Tournament teams. While there is still a significant gap between the Boilermakers and the No. 1 seeds, they’re also a team with a high seeding floor because of what they’ve accomplished already and because any losses incurred from here on out would likely be Quad 1 or 2 defeats.
Holy hoops! Villanova, Notre Dame finalizing plans to open 2026-27 college basketball season in Rome, Italy
Matt Norlander
Nebraska would have been in position to potentially rise up and claim a No. 2 seed if it had completed the comeback and taken down Purdue. However, the Cornhuskers weren’t penalized too harshly and remained a No. 3 seed.
Bracketology top seeds
Check out the full field of 68 at the CBS Sports Bracketology hub.
Illinois falls
Despite the fact that Illinois (20-5, 11-3 Big Ten) now has five losses, our model is still high on the Illini over the long haul and projects they will rise to the No. 2 line by Selection Sunday. For now, consecutive overtime losses by a combined five points have taken a toll on Illinois’ resume. Illinois still rates as the nation’s No. 6 team at KenPom. But its No. 9 ranking in wins above bubble (WAB) reflects a resume that is more in line with a No. 3 seed.
Assessing the Atlantic 10’s prospects
George Mason entered Tuesday night’s game at Richmond within striking distance of the at-large discussion because of its top-50 resume. But after taking an 82-70 Quad 3 loss, the Patriots now have an even thinner margin for error. At just 3-3 over its last six games, George Mason is trending in the wrong direction.
However, all hope is not lost for the Atlantic 10’s hopes of producing more than one bid. VCU is entering its Wednesday night game at La Salle in the “First Four Out” category. At 18-6 and 9-2 in the A-10, the Rams are in the hunt as a team that with at least some chance to join Atlantic 10 stalwart Saint Louis (23-1, 11-0) in the field.
However, the surest path for the A-10 to two-bid status after having just one team selected in two of the past three seasons would likely be for someone other than Saint Louis to win the conference tournament. With the Billikens firmly in at-large territory, this league could end up producing a “bid thief.” George Mason and VCU are both good enough to enter the conference tournament on the wrong side of the bubble, hold the trophy on the end and then be dangerous in the Big Dance.
When former FBI agent Katherine Schweit heard about the disappearance of Nancy Guthrie, her mind drifted to a crime that took place in rural Wisconsin more than two decades ago.
An 88-year-old grandmother was abducted from her home in February 2003 and placed in the trunk of her car. Her abductor drove her to his property and shackled her inside a trailer. Soon after, the woman’s grandson, who owned a construction company, started to receive messages demanding millions for her release.
“The kidnapper thought he could get a big ransom from the family,” said Schweit, who investigated the case and helped capture the suspect and rescue the woman five days after she was taken.
The Guthrie case doesn’t seem to be following that script, Schweit said. “If you were going to abduct somebody for cash, why wouldn’t you aggressively try to get the cash by communicating with the family right from the start, so you could get your money and return the victim?”
It’s one of the big questions baffling investigators, law enforcement experts and the millions of Americans following the high-profile case. Even the recent release of home surveillance footage showing a potential subject provides no additional information about the person’s possible motive or what happened to Guthrie.
An FBI billboard in California displaying a missing person alert for Nancy Guthrie on Monday.via KNBC
The 84-year-old mother of NBC’s “TODAY” show co-anchor Savannah Guthrie vanished from her home outside of Tucson, Ariz., after she was dropped off by family members on the night of Jan. 31.
Eleven days later, the identity of her abductor or abductors remains a mystery. But Tuesday, the FBI released images and videos from Guthrie’s home security camera showing a person in a ski mask and gloves and carrying what appears to be a handgun. The person walks up to her house, head down, and then attempts to tamper with the camera.
Michael Alcazar, a retired New York Police Department detective who is now an adjunct professor at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice, said he expects the new images and videos to produce a flood of tips that will help investigators identify the person.
“One hundred percent, somebody is going to recognize him,” Alcazar said.
Alcazar said he thinks it’s significant that the suspect approached the house with the head down, an apparent effort to keep the doorbell camera from recording the face. “That tells me he’s been there before,” said Alcatraz, who added that he wouldn’t discount the possibility that it was a burglary gone wrong.
Following the release of the new images and videos, Savannah Guthrie posted on her Instagram page: “We believe she is still alive. Bring her home.”
Abductions involving adults are rare in the United States, and rarer still are the kind that do not involve family disputes, drug traffickers or gangs, experts say.
Chip Massey, a retired FBI hostage negotiator, said the unusual circumstances of the case — an abduction involving a famous American family — reminded him of the 1932 kidnapping of famed aviator Charles Lindbergh’s 20-month-old son from his home in New Jersey.
“This is the stuff of movies,” he said.
In Guthrie’s case, a possible ransom note was sent to three news outlets, and the FBI said it referenced an Apple Watch, which she is believed to have worn. The note contained two deadlines — one at 5 p.m. Feb. 5, and a second deadline Monday, according to Heith Janke, the special agent in charge of the FBI’s Phoenix division. But he said the note did not establish a means for communication.
A second note was sent to local TV station KOLD, but it did not contain a ransom demand and was different “in almost every way” from the first one, according to its news director Jessica Bobula.
Massey, the retired FBI hostage negotiator, said the lack of communication complicates law enforcement’s ability to identify whoever is responsible.
“If I can’t hear a voice, if they can’t hear mine, a lot of my training and background is now useless,” he said.
Written messages alone, Massey added, can provide important leads for investigators, but they also could be used to deceive law enforcement.
A Pima County Sheriff’s Office deputy stands outside of the home of Nancy Guthrie in Tucson, Ariz., on Sunday.Rebecca Noble / Getty Images
The authorities have revealed that Guthrie’s blood was found on her porch. She has mobility issues and requires daily medication, but her mind is sharp, according to local authorities.
Jim Cavanaugh, a retired agent from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives who is now an NBC News law enforcement analyst, said he’s not convinced the ransom note is legitimate. He said that anyone could know that Guthrie wore an Apple Watch — all you have to do is Google her.
“There’s a picture that pops right up where they’re on the set of the ‘TODAY’ show, and the mother has a very prominent Apple Watch on,” he said. “Anybody sitting in Kathmandu could hit Google and see those pictures and demand bitcoin.”
Cavanaugh noted that Tucson is close to the southern border, where Mexican drug cartels operate. In the mid-2000s, its neighboring big city, Phoenix, was labeled the “kidnapping capital of the U.S.A,” and many of the crimes were linked to the cartels.
He sees no reason why a cartel would target someone like Guthrie. He thinks it’s more likely that a homegrown criminal would seek to hold her for ransom, but that this person did not expect the case to blow up so quickly into a national obsession.
“It got too big, too fast,” Cavanaugh said. “They could have gotten scared by the scope of the response and then abandoned it. But then, why wouldn’t they release Nancy? Where’s Nancy?”
Cavanaugh said that’s not the only possibility investigators would consider. The abductors could have hit the wrong house and decided against returning her out of fear of going to prison. Or this could have nothing to do with money, he said, and the person responsible could be harboring some kind of grudge.
Schweit, the former FBI agent, said it wouldn’t be especially hard for someone to remove Guthrie from her home and drive away undetected given the location. She lives in a quiet community about 6 miles north of Tucson where homes are spread out across desert terrain.
“That’s what makes it challenging for law enforcement,” she said.
In the absence of eyewitness accounts and additional surveillance footage revealing more about the suspect, Schweit said, investigators seeking clues are forced to scrutinize the recordings from cameras that could be miles away.
They must canvass an almost endless number of locations and neighborhoods seeking information from people who might have seen something suspicious. And the FBI’s behavioral experts based in Quantico, VIrginia, will be reviewing large amounts of data in the hope of finding a kernel of information that could lead to a suspect, Schweit said.
“It’s not a straight line,” she added, “from somebody gets abducted, a ransom note goes out, the person who gets kidnapped is recovered. That only happens in the movies.”
The FBI, Schweit said, is “incredibly capable of carrying out very complex work.”
“She’s out there, and they will find her. We just want to find her in time.”
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – The Children’s Cancer Fund of New Mexico is a nonprofit that helps kids and families living with pediatric cancer. The organization’s performing arts program gives kids an opportunity to perform music, act and dance. The performing arts program provides kids weekly classes for music, acting and dancing is coming soon. The classes […]
W.A.S.P. have announced a major U.S. and Canada tour for fall 2026, unveiling the aptly titled 1984 To Headless Tour, with KK’s Priest confirmed as very special guests.
Kicking off on September 10 in California and running through October 31, the tour will see W.A.S.P. return to North American stages playing selected hits from their first four albums, a period that frontman Blackie Lawless calls foundational to the band’s legacy. Get your tickets here.
The 1984 To Headless tour pays tribute to the era that cemented W.A.S.P.‘s place in rock history, beginning with their self-titled debut in 1984, followed by The Last Command, Inside The Electric Circus, and culminating in what Lawless describes as “their greatest yet,” 1989’s The Headless Children.
“The 1st Five Years of an artist’s career most always determine what their legacy will be,” the band notes, and W.A.S.P. used that period to establish themselves as pioneers of shock rock, psycho drama, and theatrical live spectacle — a reputation they plan to fully embrace on this run.
According to Lawless, this tour is something the band has never attempted before. “Playing those songs from those 1st Four Albums in a combined package like this is something we’ve never attempted,” he said. “The entire stage show will look like the album covers from those records will come alive… right before your eyes.”
He added that the production will lean heavily into the bombast and visual storytelling that made W.A.S.P. legendary live. “When elements of those album covers start to come alive, right on the stage before the people, it’s gonna be something they’ll not soon forget.”
KK’s Priest founder K.K. Downing echoed that enthusiasm, confirming the band’s return to North America after an extended absence. “Great news! KK’S PRIEST is going to be returning to the US and Canada this September and October 2026,” he said. “With over 40 shows, this is going to be an epic metal and steel tour featuring lots of Priest classics.”
9/10 El Cajon, CA The Magnolia 9/11 Los Angeles, CA The Wiltern 9/12 Riverside, CA Fox Performing Arts Center 9/13 Phoenix, AZ Celebrity Theater 9/14 Santa Fe, NM Buffalo Thunder Resort & Casino 9/16 Austin, TX Emos 9/17 Tulsa, OK Tulsa Theater 9/18 Dallas, TX House Of Blues 9/19 San Antonio, TX Aztec Theater 9/20 Houston, TX House Of Blues 9/22 Clearwater, FL Ruth Eckard Hall 9/23 Daytona, FL Peabody Auditorium 9/24 Jacksonville, FL Florida Theater 9/25 Raleigh, NC The Ritz 9/26 Jim Thorpe, PA Penn’s Peak 9/27 Portland, ME Aura 9/29 Boston, MA House Of Blues 9/30 Hampton, NH Hampton Beach Casino 10/1 Wallington, CT Toyota Oakdale Theatre 10/2 New York, NY The Palladium 10/3 Carteret, NJ Carteret Performing Arts Center 10/5 Montreal, QC Mtelus 10/6 Ottawa, ON Hard Rock Casino 10/7 Pickering, ON Pickering Casino Resort 10/9 Des Plaines, IL Des Plaines Theater 10/10 St Charles, IL Arcada Theater 10/11 St Charles, IL Arcada Theater 10/13 Glenside, PA Keswick Theatre 10/14 Harrisburg, PA Capitol City Music Hall 10/15 Cleveland, OH Agoura Theater 10/16 Milwaukee, WI Pabst Theater 10/17 Green Bay, WI EPIC Event Center 10/19 Winnipeg, MB Burton Cummings Theatre 10/21 Edmonton, AB Midway Music Hall 10/22 Calgary, AB The Palace Theater 10/23 Coquitlam, BC Great Canadian Casino Vancouver 10/25 Seattle, WA Moore Theater 10/27 San Jose, CA San Jose Civic 10/29 Rancho Mirage, CA The Show Agua Caliente 10/30 Las Vegas, NV House Of Blues 10/31 Anaheim, CA The Grove
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