MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. — The U.S. National Junior Team doesn’t hide from the fact that a third straight gold medal at the IIHF World Junior Championship is on the line.

It’s something that hasn’t been done since Canada won the last of five straight in 2009, but the U.S. has that chance after two straight championship performances for the first time in its history.

There’s major motivation, too. Of the seven tournament championships won, the U.S. never has celebrated one on home ice in seven tries.

“I remember two years ago, (U.S. general manager) John Vanbiesbrouck was talking about how they never won in Sweden, and they ended up winning there (at the 2024 WJC),” U.S. forward Cole Eiserman said. “So now we have to win in the States. Hopefully history repeats itself with that and we can win on home soil, which would be pretty cool, especially in Minnesota.”

Eiserman (New York Islanders), a left wing with Boston University, is one of nine returning players from the team that won 4-3 in overtime against Finland in the 2025 WJC final in Ottawa. He played a variety of situations and had seven points (three goals, four assists) in seven games.

Lauded for his big shot on the power play (two power-play goals), Eiserman did see limited time last year, ranking 13th of 14 U.S. forwards in average ice time (10:08). While he’ll do whatever it takes to help his country succeed, there’s no question he’d like to have a greater impact this year.

“I’m one of the older guys this year, so having a leadership role would be huge,” Eiserman said. “Obviously playing on that first power play, playing more minutes, just kind of being a leader. I’ve played a year of college hockey and that’s pretty huge, especially going to these tournaments where you’re getting into different situations I’ve been able to prepare for just from college.”

The 18-year-old (6-foot, 200 pounds) led first-year NCAA players and Boston University skaters with 25 goals and ranked fifth among first-year college players with 36 points.

“Obviously he values scoring, which is great, and to end up with 25 goals shows he made a lot of progress during the season,” BU coach Jay Pandolfo said. “For me, I think his overall game got a lot better. I think early on he was probably putting pressure on himself to score. That’s how he feels like he helps the team best, and no question that’s one of the ways. But you also have to add other things to your game, and he certainly has done that, and it showed over the course of the season.”

What were those other things?

“Being able to play away from the puck a lot better, defensively very reliable, being able to play a 5-on-6, being out there for a defensive-zone draw, making more plays out of the zone, off the wall, being a good winger, being able to support your teammates … pro habits,” Eiserman said. “Being able to play defensively, play in the neutral zone, all three areas of the ice. It’s a lot of fun when you can get more trust from the coaches.”

Said U.S. coach Bob Motzko: “He knows exactly what he has to do. Plus, we want him to do what he does best — shoot the puck.”

U.S. defenseman Cole Hutson (Washington Capitals) has seen a more focused and determined version of his Boston University teammate this season.

“Cole is becoming a pro off the ice,” Hutson said. “Little details like diet, getting in the gym … I’ve honestly kind of taken things from him, but don’t tell him that. I don’t think he gets enough credit with how hard he works, how bad he wants to be out there and how competitive he is. He’s a dog on the puck when he wants it.”

Hutson and Eiserman are two of 42 U.S. players at the World Junior Summer Showcase this week at Ridder Arena competing for the right to earn a roster spot for their country at the 2026 IIHF World Junior Championship. It’s the second time the tournament will be held in Minnesota; the U.S. first hosted World Juniors in Minneapolis and Saint Paul in 1982.

“You want to do it in your home country,” U.S. center James Hagens (Boston Bruins) said. “As fun as it was when we did it over in Canada (at the 2025 WJC in Ottawa), it means a lot when you’re on your own soil. You don’t want to stand on that blue line and hear a different country’s national anthem.”

The 2026 WJC will be held at the Xcel Energy Center and 3M Arena at Mariucci from Dec. 26-Jan. 5, 2026.

“We made history last year, and hopefully we can extend history this year,” Hutson said. “Obviously we had a good tournament last year and now our expectation is gold. That’s what we’re pushing for.”

Said Hagens: “There are 42 guys here trying to make one roster. This isn’t summer hockey. This is real hockey. It’s high paced. You’re trying out to be able to wear your country’s logo so it means a lot. I know every guy here wants to be on this team, including myself. So it’s just getting prepared, making sure you’re starting your season off strong and that you’re ready for once that tournament comes.”

NHL.com senior writer Tom Gulitti and independent correspondent Jessi Pierce contributed to this story

Nick Saban insisted that he has little interest in assuming a coaching position at this time despite voicing his support for Donald Trump’s executive order regarding NIL payments

Nick Saban poured cold water on a potential return to coaching despite voicing his support for the sweeping changes coming to college football.

Earlier this week, Donald Trump signed an executive order barring student athletes from accepting pay-for-play payments from third-party sources. Regular NIL payments, meanwhile, will remain unrestricted.

Saban played a pivotal role in the President’s directive, which is why it came as no surprise that the 73-year-old was incredibly supportive of the move. “I think President Trump’s executive order takes a huge step in providing the educational model, which is what we’ve always tried to promote to create opportunities for players, male and female, revenue and non-revenue, so they can have development as people, students, and develop careers and develop professionally if that’s what they choose to do,” Saban said while making an appearance on ‘Fox & Friends.’

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“I think we sort of need to make a decision here relative to do we want to have an education-based model, which I think the president made a huge step toward doing that, or do we want to have universities sponsor professional teams? And I think most people would choose the former.”

Discussing the fine line between acceptable NIL deals versus pay-for-play agreements, Saban added: “I think the clearing house is there to authenticate name, image and likeness. In other words, is your marketing value relative to what you’re getting paid to do a marketing opportunity? When you cross that line, that’s when it becomes pay for play.

“So you have collectives that raise money that pay players, and they really don’t do a relative marketing job to earn that money, and that’s where this whole thing has kind of gotten sideways.

“I think this whole clearing house is there to sort of protect the collective affecting competitive balance in college sports.”

Given Saban’s vocal criticism of the transfer portal and multi-million dollar NIL deals, rumors swirled that the watershed changes to college football could sway the former coach to put the headset back on.

Over a decorated coaching career at Toledo, Michigan State, LSU and Alabama, Saban compiled a 292-71-1 record and seven national championships in addition to brief NFL stints with the Cleveland Browns and Miami Dolphins.

Yet Saban asserted that he has little interest in assuming a coaching position at this point in time. “No, I’m really happy with what I’m doing right now,” he said of being a sportscaster. “It’s exciting to still be involved in the game.

“It’s exciting for me to work with athletic directors, conference commissioners, people in Congress to preserve the integrity of our game and continue to be able to create opportunities to help young people create value for their future that will help them be successful in their life, which is what we always try to do as a coach.”

“There is no opportunity that I know of right now that would enhance me to go back to coaching,” Saban continued.

“I enjoy what I’m doing. I did it for 50 years, I loved it. I loved the relationships with the players. I loved the competition.

“But it’s another station of life now. I enjoy what I’m doing right now and want to continue to do it — spend more time with my family, my grandchildren, my children. It’s been really, really good.”

Welcome back to “On the Air,” in which Sports Media Watch Podcast co-host Armand Broady will offer in-depth breakdowns of broadcasters’ on-air performance and career journeys, plus chronicle broader trends in the industry.

Sports media historians know the name Ray Scott. In the 1960s and ’70s, Scott was a prominent voice of NFL coverage on CBS. He called four Super Bowls, including the first two, and the famous Ice Bowl of 1967.

In those days, CBS assigned its NFL announcers to single teams. Scott drew the Packers. Under legendary coach Vince Lombardi, Green Bay won five championships in the ’60s, and Scott’s voice became inextricably linked with the franchise.

He was the master of brevity; no flowery prose, no highfalutin jargon — just conciseness and accuracy. Scott announced games like a stern professor at the front of a classroom, his rich baritone voice providing measured captions. “Starr … Dowler … touchdown.” His position was unequivocal: The audience can see what’s happening. Let the TV cameras do the heavy lifting.

It’s an approach Scott’s pupil and former broadcast partner Pat Summerall adopted. For more than 20 years and across two networks, Summerall worked with analyst John Madden, forming one of the most acclaimed broadcast teams in sports television history. With his animated delivery and constant use of onomatopoeia, Madden gave the broadcasts an uncommon verve, while Summerall anchored the telecasts with his short, deliberate morsels of commentary.

A TV play-by-play announcer exercising such extraordinary self-restraint seems unfathomable in 2025. Host Dan Patrick addressed this topic recently with ESPN “Monday Night Football” voice Joe Buck on the “The Dan Patrick Show.”

Patrick asked, “When did we get to the point where we had to fill all of the time with voices?”

“It should be the reverse,” Buck responded. “Don’t be afraid to not talk. Insecurity breeds overtalking. I can make the case that with the advancements that have been made in audio, there is no more dead air. If I don’t talk, you’re going to hear Aaron Rodgers calling out signals at the line of scrimmage or just good natural sound.”

Buck’s point is valid. Part of the charm of an NFL telecast is hearing the quarterback go through his cadence at the line of scrimmage. Think of Tom Brady’s “GREEN 18,” Dak Prescott’s “HERE WE GOOOOOOO” or Peyton Manning’s “OMAHAAAAA!” To allow the audience to fully appreciate what unfolds pre-snap, the announcers have to be silent, at least sometimes. The viewers can see a receiver going in motion, a linebacker approaching the line to show blitz, or a tailback lined up behind the fullback in the I-formation.

Buck practices what he preaches. Many of his most memorable calls offer few words. When the Giants took a late 4th quarter lead over the Patriots in Super Bowl 42, Buck declared, “Manning … lobs it … Burress … alone … touchdown, New York!” His voice-cracking call of “Diggs … sideline … touchdown!” during the Saints-Vikings 2017 divisional playoff game became an instant classic, not just for his enthusiasm, but for his economy of words.

It should be noted that the word “enthusiasm” has not always been associated with the veteran announcer. For close to a decade, Buck was scorned by viewers and columnists for his dispassionate calls, including his infamous description of David Tyree’s helmet catch in Super Bowl 42. By his own admission, Buck was following the Scott-Summerall template too closely.

“I tried to sound like Pat,” Buck admitted to The Ringer in 2016. “People took that as indifference.”

Summerall is regarded as an all-time great by most observers, but his calls fit within a different era of football and of sports television. Today, Summerall’s play-by-play would be deemed joyless and unemotional. Times change.

While insecurity is a plausible reason for overtalking, there are other possibilities. Many TV play-by-play announcers come from radio, where everything must be explained. Shifting from radio’s descriptive style to television’s caption style can be a daunting task. It is also plausible that TV executives and audiences expect announcers to talk more. Many feel there’s a clear correlation between energy and commentary. Some hold that if the announcer is glad to be working the game, he or she should talk more so as to not appear bored or jaded.

Broadcasting is a subjective field. On television, the rule of “less is more” still applies. Sure, Ray Scott’s laconic style is anachronistic in today’s “information overload” environment, but he captured the spirit of what TV play-by-play is. The industry’s best announcers understand the importance of using the right words, not the most words.

Plus: Unpacking Drew Brees’ second chance at broadcasting

Drew Brees will be a game analyst for Christmas Day NFL coverage on Netflix, according to Andrew Marchand of The Athletic.

Once considered an heir apparent to NBC’s Cris Collinsworth, Brees parted ways with the Peacock network after being panned for an underwhelming on-air performance during the Raiders-Bengals Wild Card game of 2022.

It shouldn’t be surprising that a player of Brees’ stature is getting another chance at broadcasting. He is a future first ballot Hall-of-Famer and some of his NBC work was fine.

What makes Brees’ comeback tour unique is the circumstances surrounding it. For last year’s Christmas doubleheader, Netflix used prominent game announcers from CBS and Fox. But networks like ESPN and Fox are reportedly reluctant to share talent with Netflix this time around, creating room for analysts like Brees. Consider this: If Netflix could get Kevin Burkhardt and Tom Brady (as they reportedly wanted last year) or Jim Nantz and Tony Romo to lead its broadcasts, would Brees get the nod? It seems unlikely.

Whichever game he calls — Cowboys-Commanders or Lions-Vikings — millions will tune in, providing Brees an opportunity to redeem his once promising broadcast career. On a larger scale, assuming the NFL doesn’t wield its immense power, Brees’ performance could motivate a streamer like Netflix to look past established announcers at other networks and elevate (if only for a couple games) its own voices.

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WILKES-BARRE — On a recent drive through the homeland — Plymouth, Pa. — I turned down Gaylord Avenue, and halfway down, I saw it — a Mister Softee truck.

The familiar music of my childhood was playing, and the purr of the generator keeping all the ice cream cold was pouring out of it.

And I wasn’t even in the Way Back Machine, yet I was transported back to the early 1960s, and I nearly stopped to get a milkshake.

And just a week later, the Mister Softee sojourn continued at The Cafe in Plains Township, where I found myself sitting across from Michael “Mickey” Waligorski, whose family had the first Mister Softee franchise in the area.

Waligorski was gathering with his classmates of the Plymouth High School Class of 1959 — a really fun group.

Waligorski told us about his father, who secured the rights to Mister Softee franchises in Pennsylvania and most of New York state. I still remember hearing Mister Softee’s music playing from blocks away, giving us kids enough time to convince our parents to give us money for a treat.

The Waligorskis secured their Mister Softee franchise in 1958, with multiple family members operating franchises and trucks across several generations.

When I talked with Waligorski, I told him about how my mother’s heart was filled with compassion for a mentally challenged kid who lived next door. His name was Chuckie.

Every summer day in our neighborhood, the Mister Softee ice cream truck would drive through, dispensing ice cream, milkshakes, sundaes, and smiles to kids in need of their daily sugar fixes. Every day, I would ask my mom for money to get a Mister Softee treat — my favorite was a chocolate milkshake.

My mother would always comply, but always with a condition — I first had to ask Chuckie what he wanted and get it for him. And I did — Chuckie would request his usual — a vanilla cone. Once I delivered that to Chuckie, then my mother gave me the necessary financing for my treat.

But it was a lesson learned, as was the case so many times with my mom. She taught me just about everything — to be kind to people, to respect people’s feelings, to listen, to help, to care. And to love her cooking — oh, how I long for her red vegetable soup with homemade noodles.

These were summer days, and school was out. I would go outside to see who was around. A few of my pals would be gathering on the corner of Reynolds and Second streets.

Sometimes, we would take a walk up Reynolds Street and head down to the creek that ran along the backyards of our houses.

We would go all the way up and then circle around until we came upon the big shovel that was moving mounds of dirt. Strip mining was big in those days. Little did we know the environmental damage that was being done.

We would return to our houses where our moms would prepare a delicious gourmet meal of sandwiches and soup for lunch. We might stick around and watch an episode of Leave It To Beaver, or Ozzie and Harriet before we would return to the street.

We would get up a game of stocking ball, using a “ball” fashioned out of old socks, sewn closed by my mom. We would use wooden bats and play a game in the street.

Sometimes we would seek the shade of my backyard for a game of Wiffle Ball. A ball hit on the lower roof was a double, on the top roof a triple and over the roof a home run.

Now, it was dinner time. Dad was home, and we would sit around the table and have a nutritious meal prepared by my mom — the best cook in the world. Dad would say, “So what did you do today?” I would leave out the Wiffle Ball in the backyard because he knew I had a Little League game at 6 p.m.

After dinner, I would put on my Little League uniform and jump in Dad’s car and head to Wadham Street for my game. My mom and my Aunt Betty (Dad’s sister) were working the refreshment stand with their friends — most with kids on the teams.

The Plymouth Little League field was spectacular — a wooden fence surrounded the diamond and advertising signs were painted on each section. The field sat behind Huber Field, home of the Plymouth High School Shawnee Indians football team.

These were the good old days for sure.

And Mister Softee was always there.