Samo Meritähti brings grit, size to Augustana blue line – Sioux Falls Live
SIOUX FALLS — For Samo Meritähti, a fresh start with the Augustana hockey team is sure to bolster the Vikings’ blue line in 2025-26. On May 19, the 6-foot-3 Finnish defenseman officially transferred to AU, becoming the second Augustana skater to join the program this offseason via the portal. “I’m humbled and really excited to […]
SIOUX FALLS — For Samo Meritähti, a fresh start with the Augustana hockey team is sure to bolster the Vikings’ blue line in 2025-26.
On May 19, the 6-foot-3 Finnish defenseman officially transferred to AU, becoming the second Augustana skater to join the program this offseason via the portal.
“I’m humbled and really excited to come there. It’s a good program,” said Meritähti, who spent last season at Providence College. “Everything’s top-level there, so I can’t wait to get things started at Augustana.”
Born in central Finland, Meritähti’s family moved to Helsinki when he was about 9 years old. It was around that time he began playing hockey.
In 2021-22, Meritähti played for Sport U20, notching 25 points (eight goals, 17 assists) in 40 games during his first and only full season in Finland’s premier junior league, U20 SM-Sarja.
The following season, Meritähti made his way to the United States Hockey League with the Tri-City Storm, tallying seven points (three goals, four assists) in 61 games. He was then traded to Omaha early in the 2023-24 season.
With the Lancers, Meritähti recorded one goal and six assists in 15 games and was beginning to put together a breakout campaign in the USHL, but on Nov. 25, 2023, he was dealt a crushing blow when he tore his ACL during a game against Lincoln.
Tri-City’s Samo Meritähti skates with the puck against Omaha during a USHL game Friday, December 9, 2022, at the Viaero Center in Kearney, Neb.
Eldon Holmes / Tri-City Storm
It ended up being the final game of Meritähti’s junior career. Following his surgery, he headed to Providence to recover and begin his college career.
“Mentally, it was tough,” Meritähti said. “You kind of start thinking about how your season’s over and probably next season, too, but Providence took care of my ACL really well. We had great doctors. The surgery went well. Obviously watching the games in the stands was tough, but I’m a tough guy. And I know I’ve got to go through this and come back stronger. I feel really good right now. I obviously got help from my family and girlfriend and all that.
“It was tough, but sometimes life brings you hard times. I feel it was meant to happen. I learned a lot of things from that and got mentally stronger.”
From the end of his junior hockey career to now, it’s been a long journey for Meritähti.
Although he was cleared to return to action last season, Meritähti never saw the ice during his freshman campaign, so he and his agent began exploring their options.
On March 31, Meritähti entered his name in the portal, and the Vikings’ coaching staff was quick to show some interest.
Tri-City’s Samo Meritähti skates with the puck against Lincoln during a USHL game Saturday, December 17, 2022, at the Viaero Center in Kearney, Neb.
Eldon Holmes / Tri-City Storm
Meritähti had already established some familiarity with Augustana through past encounters. In 2010-11, Vikings coach Garrett Raboin spent a year playing professionally in Finland, where he made valuable connections in the recruiting landscape that eventually carried into his coaching endeavors.
There was also a previous relationship with Augustana assistant coach Taylor Nelson, who had recruited Meritähti during his time as an assistant at UMass Lowell from 2021-23.
In mid-April, Meritähti took an official visit to Augustana, and he was quickly enamored by the campus and facilities.
“I was there for two days, and I loved it,” Meritähti said. “The rink was cool. Obviously it has brand new facilities and everything. I really liked the guys. I loved the coaching staff and how Raboin has built a culture with the team. It was really good.
“The overall feeling when you go in the locker room is really good. I already felt myself as a part of the team. The boys were really nice to me and all that.”
Meritähti figures to fill a hole on the Vikings’ blue line at left defense. Among AU’s six graduates this season is Uula Ruikka, a left-handed defenseman who shares the same agent as Meritähti. In two seasons with the Vikings, Ruikka amassed a total of 22 points (seven goals, 15 assists) in 53 appearances.
Augustana student helper Jimi Nousiainen, a Finland native, is also familiar with Meritähti.
“It’s good to have at least one Finn on a team,” Meritähti said. “Now, it’s Jimi and myself, so now we have two Finns, which is really cool.”
Meritähti’s 190-pound frame gives the Vikings more size on the blue line. He’s a physical player who has demonstrated a willingness to block shots.
“I’m a big team player, but I can do offensive stuff pretty well, too,” Meritähti said. “When I was in Finland, I was on the first power play. I actually played on the power play in the USHL, too, but I feel like my strengths are on the defensive side.”
Meritähti says he plans to spend the summer in Finland, where he’ll practice, skate and work out with the Finnish pro team in Espoo.
“I’m still rehabbing my knee. It feels normal now, but I’ve still got to do some balance and all that,” Meritähti said. “I’m going to spend a lot of time on the ice to get faster, quicker. I obviously want to get more strength, but I feel the biggest things I’ve got to work on are to be more explosive after my injury so that I’m ready to play when the puck drops at Minnesota Duluth.”
President Trump issues college sports executive order addressing NIL, pay-for-play
President Donald Trump issued an executive order on July 24 that attempts to create a national standard for NCAA name, image and likeness programs. The order is Trump’s latest entry into a debate that has embroiled the NCAA since NIL rules went into effect in 2021, ushering in a wild-west era of college sports that […]
President Donald Trump issued an executive order on July 24 that attempts to create a national standard for NCAA name, image and likeness programs.
The order is Trump’s latest entry into a debate that has embroiled the NCAA since NIL rules went into effect in 2021, ushering in a wild-west era of college sports that has come under increasing scrutiny by local and national legislators.
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Broadly focused on efforts to “save college athletics,” the order also seeks to preserve and support “expansion of opportunities for scholarships and collegiate athletic competition in women’s and non-revenue sports.” Most of the NIL money is given to athletes in football and men’s and women’s basketball.
The settlement in the long-running House v. NCAA case went into effect July 1 and allowed schools to directly pay college athletes through a revenue-sharing model.
In May, Trump appeared poised to create a commission co-chaired by former Alabama coach Nick Saban and influential Texas Tech booster Cody Campbell with a directive to explore and address major issues facing college sports. But there have been no announcements regarding that directive.
This week, a bill in the U.S. House of Representatives aimed at restructuring rules around the administration of college athletics passed two committees and is expected to move to the House floor when the summer recess is over in September.
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Speaking at a National Press Club event in Washington earlier in the day, before the order was signed, NCAA President Charlie Baker was asked about possible executive order on college sports. He said he was open to ideas, but “our focus needs to be on the legislative process.”
SEC commissioner Greg Sankey, who along with many in college sports has been advocating for federal intervention, told USA TODAY Sports last week, “The President is going to do what he wants to do.”
“I’ve read things on social media, but I also read that there would be a presidential commission,” Sankey added. “So the question with an executive order is if (Trump) does, and then what it is, and then we’ll go from there.”
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Donald Trump issues college sports executive order for NIL
Howe Tabbed for U.S. Under-18 Men’s Select Team Staff
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COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – Yale men’s hockey assistant coach Joe Howe has been selected to serve as an assistant coach for the U.S. Under-18 Men’s Select Team. The team will hold training camp from July 28-August 3 at USA Hockey Arena in Plymouth, Michigan. Following camp, 23 players will […]
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – Yale men’s hockey assistant coach Joe Howe has been selected to serve as an assistant coach for the U.S. Under-18 Men’s Select Team.
The team will hold training camp from July 28-August 3 at USA Hockey Arena in Plymouth, Michigan. Following camp, 23 players will be chosen to compete in the 2025 Hlinka Gretzky Cup, held August 11–16 in Brno, Czechia and Trencín, Slovakia.
This marks Howe’s second consecutive summer with USA Hockey. In 2024, he served as an assistant coach for the U.S. Under-17 team at the Five Nations Tournament in Pieštany, Slovakia.
Howe joined the Yale staff in July 2021 after three seasons at the University of Alaska-Fairbanks. He previously spent three years at the University of Denver as a volunteer assistant coach and director of hockey operations. During his tenure, the Pioneers captured the 2017 NCAA Division I National Championship and an NCHC regular-season title, while making two Frozen Four appearances and qualifying for three NCAA Tournaments.
A native of Plymouth, Mass., Howe was a four-year standout at Colorado College, where he appeared in 119 games and posted a 54-50-10 record, a 2.97 goals-against average, and a .905 save percentage. He ranked third all-time in career saves. After college, Howe played professionally in the ECHL, CHL, and AHL.
N.J. boys ice hockey final rankings, All-State & top honors, 1990-2000: HS historical project
Hudson Catholic’s Benett Shelly (#57) goes down after being hit by Bayonne’s Dave Bodson (#13 left) in the NJSIAA/New Jersey Devils Tournament of Champions final hockey game at the Continental Airlines Arena in East Rutherford.SL NJ Advance Media’s HS sports department is using some of its time over the summer to republish semi-recent postseason honors […]
Hudson Catholic’s Benett Shelly (#57) goes down after being hit by Bayonne’s Dave Bodson (#13 left) in the NJSIAA/New Jersey Devils Tournament of Champions final hockey game at the Continental Airlines Arena in East Rutherford.SL
NJ Advance Media’s HS sports department is using some of its time over the summer to republish semi-recent postseason honors that, for a variety of reasons, had become largely inaccessible, even to us.
Please enjoy a look back at all the Star-Ledger’s boys ice hockey postseason honors as well as final rankings from 1990-2000.
Brian Bobal may be reached at bbobal@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on X at @BrianBobal.
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Italy’s Lorenzo Bonicelli reportedly in medically-induced coma after fall on rings at World University Games
Photo courtesy of the Italian Gymnastics Federation. Italy’s Lorenzo Bonicelli was seriously injured after a fall on his rings dismount while competing at the 2025 FISU World University Games on Wednesday. As of publishing, he is reportedly in a medically-induced coma and the rest of the Italian team withdrew from the competition. The Italian Gymnastics […]
Photo courtesy of the Italian Gymnastics Federation.
Italy’s Lorenzo Bonicelli was seriously injured after a fall on his rings dismount while competing at the 2025 FISU World University Games on Wednesday. As of publishing, he is reportedly in a medically-induced coma and the rest of the Italian team withdrew from the competition.
The Italian Gymnastics Federation published a statement Wednesday. The translated version reads, “During the men’s artistic gymnastics team competition at the 32nd Summer Universiadiade in Essen, the blue Lorenzo Bonicelli came out badly from his exercise at the rings, in the third rotation, incurring an injury on the extent of which investigations are still underway. Immediately rescued by the medical team of the German organization and by the health managers of FISU and CUSI, the twenty-three-year-old from Lecco of the Ghislanzoni GAL was transported to the nearby university polyclinic. The technical staff following the GAM mission in Germany, given the understandable emotional involvement of the rest of the team, preferred to withdraw the team from the competition. While waiting for the official medical bulletins, the FGI is all tight to Lorenzo, wishing him a speedy recovery. Come on Bonni!”
Steve Butcher, a member of the International Gymnastics Federation’s Men’s Technical Committee, shared an additional update on Facebook on Thursday, stating, “Please keep Italian gymnast Lorenzo Bonicelli (age 23) in your thoughts and prayers as he recovers from a significant neck injury suffered on his Rings dismount at the World University Games. Several of you have asked me about his condition after seeing me judging as the Apparatus Supervisor on the Rings. Sorry I could not respond sooner without confirmation. Lorenzo is in a medically induced coma after surgery last night. It will take 10 or more days to know his condition. The entire gymnastics family is pulling for Lorenzo’s full recovery!” (via Kensley Behel/Neutral Deductions)
Bonicelli reportedly fell on his neck when attempting his triple back dismount off rings. He was carried off the field of play on a stretcher and transported to a nearby hospital.
Please join us in sending Lorenzo, his family, and the Italian Gymnastics Federation our thoughts and prayers during this time. We will update this story with any further details as they are released.
Judge finds five former players not guilty of sexual assault in Hockey Canada trial
By Frank Pingue (Reuters) -Five former members of Canada’s 2018 world junior ice hockey team have been found not guilty of sexually assaulting a woman in a hotel room that year, a judge said on Thursday. The charges against Michael McLeod, Alex Formenton, Dillon Dube, Carter Hart and Cal Foote stemmed from an encounter in […]
(Reuters) -Five former members of Canada’s 2018 world junior ice hockey team have been found not guilty of sexually assaulting a woman in a hotel room that year, a judge said on Thursday.
The charges against Michael McLeod, Alex Formenton, Dillon Dube, Carter Hart and Cal Foote stemmed from an encounter in a hotel room in the Canadian city of London after a Hockey Canada gala to celebrate their world junior championship victory.
All five former National Hockey League players faced one count of sexual assault while McLeod faced an additional count of being a party to an offence. They all pleaded not guilty.
McLeod was also found not guilty of the additional charge.
According to CBC News, Justice Maria Carroccia told the courtroom that she did not find the complainant’s evidence to be “credible or reliable” and that the Crown failed to prove she did not consent to the sexual activity.
“Justice Carroccia’s carefully reasoned decision represents a resounding vindication for Mr. McLeod and for his co-defendants,” said McLeod’s lawyer, David Humphrey.
“Justice Carroccia found that the complainant’s testimony was uncredible and was unreliable.”
Crown attorney Meaghan Cunningham told reporters they would “carefully review” Carroccia’s decision but did not have further comments as the case is still within the appeal period.
Hockey Canada did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the verdict.
When the charges were announced in January 2024, McLeod and Foote were with the New Jersey Devils, Dube was with the Calgary Flames, Hart was with the Philadelphia Flyers while Formenton was playing in Switzerland.
The trial, which began in April and garnered national attention, faced many disruptions including a mistrial and two dismissed juries before Carroccia and the lawyers decided to proceed with a judge-alone trial.
A police investigation into the alleged incident was closed without charges in February 2019, but investigators reopened it in July 2022 in response to public outrage over reports that Hockey Canada used players’ registration fees to pay an undisclosed settlement to the woman who made the accusations.
The scandal prompted the Canadian federal government to freeze Hockey Canada’s funding for 10 months while a number of major companies either paused or canceled their sponsorships with the national governing body.
Amid the scandal, Hockey Canada said it would no longer use the fund financed by player registration fees to settle sexual assault claims, and the organization’s CEO and board of directors stepped down.
(Reporting by Frank Pingue in Toronto; Editing by Nia Williams and Caroline Stauffer)
The 2025 Here’s to You Kid winners have been announced, meaning that two young people in our region will be receiving monetary support in recognition of their commitment to their community. In the past year, both students have been featured in a “Here’s to You Kid” segment on WBRE/WYOU, a media partner of the […]
The 2025 Here’s to You Kid winners have been announced, meaning that two young people in our region will be receiving monetary support in recognition of their commitment to their community. In the past year, both students have been featured in a “Here’s to You Kid” segment on WBRE/WYOU, a media partner of the Times Leader.
This year’s winners are:
• Aaron Girvan, an 18-year-old student at Wyoming Valley West High School, will receive a scholarship of $1,000 to a higher education or trade school.
• Nolan Wurster, a 13-year-old student at C.E. McCall Middle School in Montoursville, will receive a $500 gift card for the purchase of books.
Mapping the ‘Old Yard’
In 2021, Aaron Girvan set out to become an Eagle Scout by properly mapping out the oldest section of Forty Fort Cemetery, aptly called the “Old Yard.” In old mapping records of the cemetery, the 1,096 gravesites that make up the Old Yard were indistinguishable from one another, making it a particularly difficult section to navigate.
Three years after beginning his project, Girvan’s work was completed. From the oldest graves — some dating back to the late 18th century — Girvan was able to salvage a clearer picture of Forty Forty Cemetery’s abundant history.
“I think it’s better that the cemetery get this type of attention,” Girvan said of the Here’s to You Kid recognition. “It’s a very interesting, very historic place in the area, and it really deserves community support and the respect that it should have as a historic site and an interesting place all around.”
Girvan can look back now on his role in mapping the Old Yard and see its future utility.
“My part was acting as a preserver of history, making sure that as much information about that cemetery is recorded in the now and can be used later on,” he said.
Aiding the firefighters
Nolan Wurster has been interested in firefighting since he was three years old. His parents initially thought the interest was a passing phase, but Nolan stayed intrigued by the intricacies of being a firefighter. As he got older, he began hanging out at the Montoursville Fire Department station and learning more.
In 2020, Nolan decided he wanted to donate his allowance and birthday money to the fire department. That began a tradition that continues to this day, in which Nolan and his family do a yearly fundraiser to help out those at the station.
“He doesn’t do this for [the attention],” Erica Wurster, Nolan’s mother, said of her son. “He had an idea and ran with it, and it stuck. It’s something that he loves to do.”
Over the years, Nolan has raised thousands of dollars for the Montoursville Fire Department through dinners, raffles and even an Easter egg hunt.
“He’s a very humble kid. He does good genuinely,” said Erica. “That is what he’s passionate about in life. He wants to be a firefighter.”