DENVER (AP) — Winnipeg Jets defenseman Brenden Dillon quickly made his way down the tunnel with his hand bleeding after a fight at the end of the game against the Colorado Avalanche on Friday night.
Dillon suffered what appeared to be a deep cut following a 6-2 loss in Game 3 of their first-round series. The Jets had no update on Dillon after the game or if the injury might have happened because of a skate blade.
“He’s still being examined,” Jets coach Rick Bowness said.
Asked if there was a lot of concern seeing a player get hurt like that, Bowness said, “Yeah, when you see the blood, yeah.”
The fight started soon after the horn and involved several players, with hockey sticks and gloves scattered all over the ice. There was blood on the back of the Avalanche forward Brandon Duhaime's jersey and covering the ice.
“Obviously, a scary situation there,” Jets defenseman Josh Morrissey said. “We’re all really concerned for him. We’re just hoping everything is OK.”
Dillon played nearly 21 minutes Friday night.
American hockey player Adam Johnson died last year from a skate cut to the neck during a game in England.
AP NHL playoffs: https://apnews.com/hub/stanley-cup and https://apnews.com/hub/nhl
Winnipeg Jets defenseman Brenden Dillon, right, collects the puck as Colorado Avalanche center Yakov Trenin, left, defends in the third period of an NHL hockey game Saturday, April 13, 2024, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
LOS ANGELES (AP) — The former interpreter for Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani has agreed to plead guilty to bank and tax fraud in a sports betting case in which prosecutors allege he stole nearly $17 million from the Japanese baseball player to pay off debts, federal prosecutors said Wednesday.
The scandal surrounding Ippei Mizuhara shocked baseball fans from the U.S. to Japan when the news broke in March.
Mizuhara will plead guilty to one count of bank fraud and one count of subscribing to a false tax return, the U.S. Justice Department announced. The bank fraud charge carries a maximum of 30 years in federal prison, and the false tax return charge carries a sentence of up to three years in federal prison.
The plea agreement says Mizuhara will be required to pay Ohtani restitution that could total nearly $17 million, as well as more than $1 million to the IRS. Those amounts could change prior to sentencing.
Mizuhara will enter his guilty plea in the coming weeks and is set to be arraigned May 14, prosecutors said.
“The extent of this defendant’s deception and theft is massive,” United States Attorney Martin Estrada said in a statement. “He took advantage of his position of trust to take advantage of Mr. Ohtani and fuel a dangerous gambling habit.”
Mizuhara exploited his personal and professional relationship with Ohtani to plunder millions from the two-way player’s account for years, at times impersonating Ohtani to bankers, prosecutors said. Mizuhara’s winning bets totaled over $142 million, which he deposited in his own bank account and not Ohtani’s. But his losing bets were around $183 million, a net loss of nearly $41 million. He did not wager on baseball.
Mizuhara helped Ohtani open a bank account in 2018 and began stealing money from that account in 2021, according to the plea agreement. At one point, Mizuhara charged the security protocols, email and phone number associated with it so that calls came directly to him, not Ohtani, when the back was trying to verify wire transfers. Mizuhara impersonated Ohtani to the bank about 24 times, according to the agreement.
Mizuhara also admitted to falsifying his 2022 tax returns by underreporting his income by more than $4 million.
An email to Mizuhara's attorney, Michael G. Freedman, seeking comment on the deal was not immediately returned Wednesday.
There was no evidence that Ohtani was involved in or aware of Mizuhara’s gambling, and the player is cooperating with investigators, authorities said.
The Los Angeles Times and ESPN broke the news of the prosecution in late March, prompting the Dodgers to fire the interpreter and MLB to open its own investigation.
MLB rules prohibit players and team employees from wagering on baseball, even legally. MLB also bans betting on other sports with illegal or offshore bookmakers.
Mizuhara has been free on an unsecured $25,000 bond, colloquially known as a signature bond, meaning he did not have to put up any cash or collateral to be freed. If he violates the bond conditions — which include a requirement to undergo gambling addiction treatment — he will be on the hook for $25,000.
Ohtani has sought to focus on the field as the case winds through the courts. Hours after his ex-interpreter first appeared in court in April, he hit his 175th home run in MLB, tying Hideki Matsui for the most by a Japan-born player, during the Dodgers’ 8-7 loss to the San Diego Padres in 11 innings.
FILE - Interpreter Ippei Mizuhara stands next to Japanese baseball star Shohei Ohtani and translates during an interview at Dodger Stadium on Feb. 3, 2024, in Los Angeles. Mizuhara, the former interpreter for Ohtani pleaded guilty to bank and tax fraud Wednesday, May 8, 2024, in a sports betting case where prosecutors allege he stole $16 million from the Japanese baseball player to pay off debts. (AP Photo/Richard Vogel, File)
FILE - Interpreter Ippei Mizuhara listens during a baseball news conference at Dodger Stadium, Thursday, Dec. 14, 2023, in Los Angeles. Mizuhara, the former interpreter for Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani pleaded guilty to bank and tax fraud Wednesday, May 8, 2024, in a sports betting case where prosecutors allege he stole $16 million from the Japanese baseball player to pay off debts. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez, File)
