KNOXVILLE, Iowa – The Speedway Motors EMi Raffle Sprint Car, benefiting the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame & Museum, will be unveiled on June 29.

The reveal will take place during Cars & Coffee at Speedway Motors, located at 340 Victory Lane, Lincoln, Neb., from 8 a.m. to Noon.

The car will feature an EMi chassis and be powered by a Speedway Motors Racing Engines 410 engine.

The car is the 13th to be raffled off by the non-profit National Sprint Car Hall of Fame & Museum.  The bi-annual program includes donations from sprint car builders and manufacturers across the country.  This sprint car will feature the famous Speedway Motors 4X and be shown at several racing events over the next 18 months, and will be given away Friday, Dec. 18, 2020.

“Our raffle car program was started back in 1995, and has been an essential component in maintaining the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame & Museum ever since,” says National Sprint Car Hall of Fame & Museum Executive Director, Bob Baker.  “We want to sincerely thank Speedway Motors/EMi, and all the sponsors who make it possible to do this. And, of course, most of all, we thank all of those who make donations and buy raffle tickets in an attempt to win a brand new sprint car.”

Additional prizes will also be awarded, including the runner-up award, a Kincrome Chest and Trolley Combo donated by Kincrome.

Raffle tickets can be purchased for $20, or six for $100 starting with the Speedway Motors event June 29.  For more information on the Speedway Motors EMi Raffle Sprint Car, visit www.SprintCarRaffle.net.

Editor’s Note: Jesse Love, 14, is a rookie in the POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget League. From June 13 through June 17, Love will be sharing his experiences with SPEED SPORT subscribers while competing during Illinois Speed Week. 

Love drives the No. 97k Toyota-powered midget for Keith Kunz Motorsports. Below is his second diary entry, recapping Thursday night’s events at Fayette County Speedway in Brownstown, Ill.

BROWNSTOWN, Ill. – Hey guys, Jesse here, and it was definitely an interesting first night for us to open POWRi Illinois Speed Week at Fayette County Speedway.

The best way I can describe how I felt about everything was that we had a decent night at Fayette. I’m definitely not satisfied with the results we had, but I’m glad I learned some good lessons along the way.

We started fourth and finished fourth in a pretty stacked heat. It’s never easy when you have Cannon McIntosh on the pole and my teammate, Logan Seavey, coming from the back of the field at the start. I felt like we were solid, but we just didn’t have quite what we needed to move forward and that hurt us a little bit when it came to passing points.

Based on where we stacked up after heat races, we started on the pole in the semi feature – that’s what some other series call the B main. We knew we had to end up in the top six in that race, and we did what we needed to do to finish second in the semi.

Our semi finish put us starting 18th in the A feature. The tough part about the race was that the track went slick early and was hard to pass on, but it did have a nice curb and was a ton of fun to race on.

We ended up finishing 14th in my third race with the team. As a racer, I’m competitive and I always want more, but I can’t complain too badly about where we’re at right now at all. We lost a lot of track time early this year because of the weather, so really we’re still learning each other as a team and trying to figure out what we need in order to succeed.

Tonight marks the second race out of four this week, and I’m really looking forward to racing again at Jacksonville Speedway! The good news is that I’ve been there before, so I already know some of what to expect and some of how the track races.

We actually finished fifth there in an unsanctioned race we ran at Jacksonville a couple of weeks ago, starting eighth and having a shot for second late in the race. I feel like, if a couple things had gone differently, we might have even been able to fight for the win in that one, but it was still a great learning experience – even if we did flip there in hot laps!

All in all, I think we made a great go of it on Thursday and now we’ve got three more days to build on, so I’m ready to keep after it and I’ll see everyone at the race track!

Read Love’s prior entry at the link below:

Speed Week Diary: Jesse Love Raring To Go!

INDIANAPOLIS – Terry, Austin and Carson McCarl will be competing in the Rayce Rudeen Foundation race, sanctioned by the Ollie’s Bargain Outlet All Star Circuit of Champions, at 34 Raceway on July 28.

“The McCarls have been so supportive of our Foundation since we introduced it to the sprint car community. They have run our decal on their cars for the last few years, so to now have them competing at this inaugural event means a lot to us,” said Kevin Rudeen.

The McCarls, who grew up racing around Iowa, are looking forward to participating in this event as a family and are excited about the awareness it will bring to the area.

“I grew up watching my Dad race in West Burlington. It’s an incredible facility, a great track with a lot of dedicated sprint car fans,” Terry McCarl stated, “I hope that this event brings more awareness to the topic of addiction. Most of us can say we have been affected by it in some way- addiction don’t discriminate. I think what the Rayce Rudeen Foundation is doing with this race is brave and I admire Kevin for sharing his story in order to help others affected by this.”

The Washington Capitals and Philadelphia Flyers swapped defensemen on Friday, with Matt Niskanen joining Philadelphia and Radko Gudas going to Washington.

Niskanen was part of the Capitals' run to a Stanley Cup title in 2018, but his productivity dipped last season, as he had his fewest points (25) since 2012-13 while his per-game time on ice was his lowest in five seasons in Washington.

"We would like to thank Matt for all of his contributions to our organization for the past five seasons," general manager Brian MacLellan said in a statement. "Matt is a consummate professional and was a big part of our success. We wish him and his family all the best moving forward."

Gudas reached 20 points for the third time in seven NHL seasons. MacLellan complimented the 29-year-old on his "competitive, physical game."

The trade also gives the Capitals some salary-cap relief. Washington will take on $2.345 million of Gudas' $3.35 million for 2019-20, after which he will be a free agent. Niskanen is under contract for two more seasons at an average annual value of $5.75 million.

The Capitals have a number of free-agent decisions to address this offseason, including winger Brett Connolly.

The New York Islanders have re-signed winger Jordan Eberle to a five-year contract before he could reach free agency next month, the team announced Friday.

Eberle's deal is worth $27.5 million and counts $5.5 million against the salary cap. Unlike former captain John Tavares, who left for Toronto last summer in free agency, Eberle decided to commit long term to the Islanders, much like teammate Brock Nelson did recently.

"I like the direction the Islanders are going," Eberle said. "From day one, my mindset was to try and get a deal done."

After re-signing Eberle and Nelson, general manager Lou Lamoriello still has captain Anders Lee and goaltender Robin Lehner as pending unrestricted free agents. Eberle said he talks to Lee but won't try to launch a full-out campaign for him to stick with New York.

"Ultimately it'll be up to his decision," Eberle said. "Anders is on his own path. No one can really blame him for taking his time or going to free agency. He's earned the right to that."

In 2018-19, Eberle had 19 goals and 18 assists in the final season of a six-year, $36 million contract he signed with the Edmonton Oilers. He added four goals and five assists in the postseason as New York reached the conference semifinals.

Eberle's best offensive season came in his second year in the league, when, as a 21-year-old Oiler, he scored 34 goals and added 42 assists. He hasn't equaled either number since. In his two seasons with the Islanders, he has 44 goals and 52 assists.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Boston Bruins captain Zdeno Chara confirmed he suffered multiple fractures to his jaw when he was hit with a puck during Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final against the Blues in St. Louis.

Chara, speaking to reporters at the Bruins' end-of-season availability Friday, said his jaw was being held together by two plates, wiring and screws for the last three games of the Final, won the the Blues on Wednesday.

"It's an amazing job on this," Chara said. "They were able to put [it] together quick -- 36 hours from the end of Game 4 to Game 5."

The 42-year-old Chara said the expected recovery time is 5-6 weeks. He also is planning to have an MRI for the lower-body injury that kept him out of Game 4 of the Eastern Conference finals against the Carolina Hurricanes.

GLENDALE, Ariz. -- The Arizona Coyotes have signed defenseman Ilya Lyubushkin to a one-year contract.

The deal was announced Friday.

The 25-year-old Lyubushkin had four assists in 41 games in 2018-19, his first season with the Coyotes. The 6-foot-2, 201-pound native of Moscow was third among NHL rookies with 150 hits.

Lyubushkin signed a one-year deal with Arizona as an undrafted free agent last year after playing 257 games with Lokomotiv Yaroslavl of the Russian Kontinental Hockey League.

Paris Saint-Germain have confirmed the return of Leonardo as sporting director and that Antero Henrique has consequently left the French champions.

On a busy Friday for PSG, the Brazilian's return to Parc des Princes after nearly six years away swiftly followed the news that the Portuguese had parted ways with the Ligue 1 giants by mutual consent.

Leonardo, 49, expressed his delight at re-joining PSG, the club where he laid the foundations for Oryx Qatar Sports Investments' (QSI) lavish project in his previous spell as sporting director, but also played for a productive season between 1996-97.

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"I am really happy to come back to PSG once again," Leonardo said in Les Parisiens' official statement. "This club has been so important to me in my football career and in my life. "I had really emotional moments here both as a player in the late 90s and more recently as sporting director along with our chairman Nasser Al-Khelaifi on my return to the club in 2011.

? "ANNOUNCE LEONARDO!"

?‍♂️ OK...

? Welcome back, @leo_de_araujo! pic.twitter.com/8gEyBNjMqw

— Paris Saint-Germain (@PSG_English) June 14, 2019

"Today, I come back to Paris full of energy to re-join this club that I deeply respect."

Leonardo resigned from his role back in July of 2013 and left in August of the same year after receiving a 13-month ban for pushing referee Alexandre Castro after sending captain Thiago Silva off in a 1-1 Ligue 1 home draw with Valenciennes. He spent 2018 as sporting director at AC Milan.

PSG chairman and CEO Al-Khelaifi expressed his satisfaction at seeing the man who kickstarted the Qatari era in Paris by signing the likes of Silva, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Javier Pastore, Thiago Motta and Maxwell, as well as landing Carlo Ancelotti as coach, restored to his original role.

"It is always a special moment to see Leonardo return to PSG," said Al-Khelaifi. "Leo has a place in our club's history, and we all know the role he played as sporting director at the start of our project. PSG has always remained his family and we are delighted to welcome him back.

"His return, with his enthusiasm and talent, will bring the club into a new ambitious cycle and I am sure that this reunion will bring happiness to the Parc des Princes, which has always kept Leo in its heart.

"Leonardo is able to link the PSG generations, which is even more special with the club's 50th anniversary next year."

PSG placed on record their gratitude towards the departing Henrique for his professionalism and commitment during his two-year stint before wishing him the best for the future.

While the Portuguese sold well and joined the capital club before the arrivals of Neymar and Kylian Mbappe, he oversaw two years of sporting regression and fell out with coach Thomas Tuchel, midfielder Adrien Rabiot and Motta in his maiden post-career role as under-19 coach.

To cap a busy day for PSG, the permanent sale of Moussa Diaby to Bayer Leverkusen on a five-year contract was confirmed in an unexpected move that will help towards remaining financially compliant with UEFA's financial fair play (FFP) rules.