BORMIO, Italy (AP) — Skiers from host Italy still trying to secure starting spots led the second downhill training session at the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics on Thursday and Austria’s Daniel Hemetsberger crashed.
Mattia Casse posted the fastest time but missed a gate midway down. Teammates Florian Schieder and Giovanni Franzoni were second and third, respectively.
Click to Gallery
Austria's Daniel Hemetsberger speeds down the course during an alpine ski, men's downhill official training, at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Bormio, Italy, Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Gabriele Facciotti)
France's Alban Elezi Cannaferina is airborne as he speeds down the course during the alpine ski, men's downhill second official training, at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Bormio, Italy, Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/John Locher)
Switzerland's Franjo von Allmen speeds down the course during the alpine ski, men's downhill second official training, at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Bormio, Italy, Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/John Locher)
United States' Ryan Cochran Siegle speeds down the course during an alpine ski, men's downhill official training, at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Bormio, Italy, Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Gabriele Facciotti)
Italy's Giovanni Franzoni speeds down the course during an alpine ski, men's downhill official training, at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Bormio, Italy, Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Gabriele Facciotti)
Franzoni, the breakout star of the Italian team who recently won the downhill in Kitzbuhel, Austria, already has a starting spot, along with Dominik Paris, who holds the Bormio record with seven World Cup victories. Casse, Schieder and Christof Innerhofer — who was seventh — are vying for the last two spots.
Favorites like Marco Odermatt and Ryan Cochran-Siegle, the American who led the opening session Wednesday, tested only portions of the Stelvio course and otherwise stood up out of their tuck positions.
Hemetsberger lost control midway down, got spun around and crashed through a gate — causing his helmet to pop off. He then hit the safety nets at high speed. He quickly got back up but was holding his face and nose area.
A third and final training session is scheduled for Friday before the downhill race on Saturday awards the first Alpine skiing medal of the Games.
AP Winter Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics
Austria's Daniel Hemetsberger speeds down the course during an alpine ski, men's downhill official training, at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Bormio, Italy, Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Gabriele Facciotti)
France's Alban Elezi Cannaferina is airborne as he speeds down the course during the alpine ski, men's downhill second official training, at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Bormio, Italy, Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/John Locher)
Switzerland's Franjo von Allmen speeds down the course during the alpine ski, men's downhill second official training, at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Bormio, Italy, Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/John Locher)
United States' Ryan Cochran Siegle speeds down the course during an alpine ski, men's downhill official training, at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Bormio, Italy, Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Gabriele Facciotti)
Italy's Giovanni Franzoni speeds down the course during an alpine ski, men's downhill official training, at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Bormio, Italy, Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Gabriele Facciotti)
DENVER (AP) — Brent Burns took a wayward stick to the face while playing for San Jose in October 2013 that ended up costing him teeth and time on the ice.
Since his return — Nov. 21, 2013, to be precise — he's been a permanent fixture in every lineup. Burns, now 41 years old and with the Colorado Avalanche, is set to play in his 1,000th straight regular-season game Saturday at Dallas.
The bearded blueliner has skated through the bumps and bruises that come with delivering checks and deflecting slap shots. So much so that Avalanche coach Jared Bednar can’t wait to one day sit down with Burns and discuss all the ailments that may have kept many a player sidelined for days, weeks and maybe even months.
“He plays through them like it’s not a big deal,” said Bednar, whose team currently owns the NHL's top seed with eight games remaining, including the pivotal contest with the Stars (six points back). “(The streak) is an incredible accomplishment. It’s hard to believe.”
For Burns, it's a streak that's involved plenty of good fortune along the way.
“You've got pucks flying around your head that you don’t see, skates popping up, guys falling on the ice,” Burns said Friday after practice. "There are so many little things that happen 100 times a game. Or you look at your visor after a game, it’s all marked up. It’s a tough game.
"It’s special to think back about some of the games that I went through that I probably shouldn’t have been (in), but I think that’s what makes it special, too. ... A lot of luck — probably why I hate talking about it.”
Burns, who turned 41 on March 9, joined the Avalanche on a one-year deal this season to chase the only thing missing from his resume — a Stanley Cup title.
He's become another leader/mentor on the Avalanche. He still chips in goals, too, on a high-scoring team that boasts Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar and Martin Necas. Burns has 11 tallies this season, joining Hall of Famer Nicklas Lidstrom as the only defensemen in league history to notch double-digit goals at 40 or older.
But Burns' specialty remains putting his 6-foot-5, 228-pound frame to good use on opponents who venture into his territory. That’s what makes his streak so remarkable — all the punishment he dishes out and takes. He’s closing in on the all-time ironman streak held by forward Phil Kessel, who played in 1,064 consecutive regular-season games from Nov. 3, 2009, to April 13, 2023.
“What Phil did was incredible,” Burns said. “He’s such a cool character to have that (record), too."
It’s a streak Avalanche captain Gabriel Landeskog fully appreciates. Landeskog missed three full regular seasons after helping the Avalanche to the 2022 Stanley Cup title because of a lingering knee injury.
“He comes to the rink with a great attitude," Landeskog explained. "He wants to be here. He’s excited to come to work.”
Burns also arrives to the rink lugging around his military-style backpack that’s stuffed with everything necessary to keep him on skates. There’s a cloud of mystery surrounding the precise contents of the heavy pack, though. Whatever it may contain — rumors of recovery gear to his own coffee setup — there's no denying it's become a healing elixir. Burns is in his 22nd NHL season and about to play in his 1,572nd career contest Saturday. The 2016-17 Norris Trophy winner is still averaging nearly 19 minutes a game and has 83 blocked shots this season.
The streak certainly impresses goaltender Scott Wedgewood.
“In my position alone, you’ll do something one game and your hip locks up a little bit,” Wedgewood said. “It’s like, ‘Thank God, I’m not playing the next one. It feels like crap right now.’
“That happens 15 times a year, just on me, let alone taking body checks and slap shots. Playing as much as he does now at that age, keeping that body fresh and everything? He probably wouldn’t be the one to tell you, but he’s probably played through thousands of different nuances.”
Burns made his NHL debut on Oct. 8, 2003, with Minnesota after being a first-round pick by the Wild. He spent seven seasons with Minnesota, 11 in San Jose and three more in Carolina before joining Colorado.
His lone appearance in the Stanley Cup final was in 2016 with the Sharks, where they lost in six games to the Pittsburgh Penguins. Burns has played in 135 career playoff contests.
His current games streak started Nov. 21, 2013 — he played right wing that season — when he returned from his injury and promptly scored a goal. In his 999th straight game Wednesday against Vancouver, he delivered a goal and an assist to become the fifth different defensemen to notch a 30-point season while in their 40s.
“It’s just ridiculous,” Makar said of the streak before suffering an upper-body injury Monday against Calgary that will keep him out a few games. “For him to be able to go out there every night and make an impact, and not just float around and do the minimum, is pretty spectacular, especially at his age.”
AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl
Washington Capitals center Dylan Strome (17) passes the puck against Colorado Avalanche defenseman Brent Burns (84) during the first period of an NHL hockey game, Sunday, March 22, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
Colorado Avalanche defenseman Brent Burns, left, drives past Winnipeg Jets defenseman Dylan Samberg in the third period of an NHL hockey game Saturday, March 28, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
Colorado Avalanche defenseman Brent Burns (84) smiles at his teammates at the end of the first period of an NHL hockey game against the Chicago Blackhawks, Friday, March 20, 2026, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley)
