Sport Steve Rosenbloom: Blackhawks legend Stan Mikita was a lesson in greatness

Tom Heckert, who served as the Cleveland Browns general manager, passed away after a long illness. He was 51.

Olympic cross-country skiing gold medallist Vibeke Skofterud died in a jet-ski accident, in southern Norway. She was 38.

Bruce Lietzke, who won 13 PGA Tour events, succumbed to brain cancer on Saturday. He was 67.

Ryan Ellis signing shows Predators believe nucleus can win it all — and it's the right play

David Poile could have broken up his defense in search of more scoring forwards, but the bulk of evidence says it's worth another run with Ryan Ellis.Was he really going to listen to his players after a crushing second-round, seven-game loss to the Winnipeg Jets? Did he really believe keeping the Nashville Predators’ nucleus together would be the best way to win a Stanley Cup? Doesn’t this team need another monster forward? Isn’t P.K.

Former Miami Hurricanes running back Tyrone Moss died Thursday night at the age of 33, the school's athletic department confirmed in a tweet Friday morning.

Moss was a first-team All-Atlantic Coast Conference selection in 2005 and ran for 1,942 yards and 26 touchdowns at Miami. A spate of injuries slowed him toward the end of his career, however, and he ultimately never played a snap in the NFL.

Rene Portland, who coached Penn State's women's basketball team to national prominence, died July 22 after a three-year fight with cancer. She was 65.

Sparano served as the head coach of the NFL’s Miami Dolphins from 2008-2011, and interim head coach of the Oakland Raiders in 2014. He was working as the Minnesota Vikings’ offensive line coach when he passed away at age 56.

Don McAuliffe, the star running back and captain for Michigan State's undefeated 1952 national championship team, has died. He was 90.

Former Texas Tech and Pittsburgh Steelers defensive tackle Gabriel Rivera died at the age of 57. Rivera, the first-round draft choice of the Steelers in 1983, reportedly became ill due to a perforated bowel. Rivera, a paraplegic, was also dealing with a perforated colon.

Mike Trout's brother-in-law dies, family releases statement

The Angels have announced Mike Trout's brother-in-law, Aaron Cox, died Wenesday morning.Trout and his family released the following statement:

Mike Kudla was an All-Big Ten defensive end and Ohio State's most valuable player on defense in 2005. He was signed by the Pittsburgh Steelers as an undrafted free agent, but injuries cut short his career. Kudla was 34.

Retired NHL goaltender Ray Emery, who helped the Ottawa Senators reach the final in 2007 and won the Stanley Cup with the Chicago Blackhawks in 2013, drowned in his hometown of Hamilton, Ontario. Nicknamed "Razor" for his aggressive style, Emery played parts of 11 seasons with the Senators, Philadelphia Flyers, Blackhawks and Anaheim Ducks from 2003-2015. He was 35.

Chappell was a two-time ACC Player of the Year at Wake Forest and an All-Star in the NBA with the New York Knicks. He passed away at 77.​

Darryl Rogers, who coached Michigan State to a share of the Big Ten title in 1978 and later took the helm for the Detroit Lions, has died. He was 83. 

Former UCLA basketball player Billy Knight died after filming a suicide video he released earlier in the day, and some details surrounding the matter are emerging. According to TMZ Sports, Knight was arrested on June 14 in Phoenix, Ariz., for alleged child sex abuse. He was being charged with “multiple counts of sexual conduct with a minor, sexual abuse and molestation of a child.” The alleged victim was only nine years old. Knight, who was facing six felonies, ended his life Sunday, July 8.

Frank Ramsey, an All-American at Kentucky and member of seven NBA championship teams with the Boston Celtics, died on July 8. He was 86.

Former Spurs GM Bob Bass dies after series of strokes

Bob Bass, the down-home-but-shrewd basketball lifer whose personnel decisions and advice to team owners left an indelible mark on the Spurs during their first two decades, died Friday night at his San Antonio home. He was 89. Bass was hospitalized Aug. 6 after suffering a stroke. On Monday, he returned home to enter hospice care after suffering a second stroke, his granddaughter Blair Bass-Percle said.During his 20 seasons with the Spurs, most of which were spent in the front office, the team advanced to the playoffs 17 times, including three trips to the conference finals.

Retired striker Alan Gilzean, who scored 133 goals in 439 appearances for Tottenham Hotspur from 1964-74 and helped the club win the UEFA Cup in 1972, died from a brain tumor July 8. He was 79.

Former UCLA and Sacramento Kings basketball player, Tyler Honeycutt, has died following a standoff with police. Los Angeles police said Honeycutt "appears to have sustained injuries consistent with a self-inflicted gunshot wound."

Honeycutt was 27.

Former NBA player, Clifford Rozier, has died following a heart attack. He was 45. Rozier had been fighting for his life for the last few days but succumbed to his condition in his hometown of Bradenton, Florida. 

Golden State selected the 6-foot-11 Rozier 16th overall out of Louisville. He played 66 games with the Warriors in 1994-95, 59 in 1995-96 and one in 1996.

Irena Szewinska, a Polish sprinter who dominated women's athletics for two decades, winning seven Olympic medals, and who later became a member of the International Olympic Committee, has died at 72.

Szewinska's husband and former coach, Janusz Szewinski, said his wife died shortly before midnight Friday in a Warsaw hospital after a battle with cancer.

John Ward, the radio voice of Tennessee football and men's basketball for over three decades, has died. He was 88.

Peter Thomson, a five-time winner of the British Open and the only player in the 20th century to win the tournament for three straight years, has died. He was 88.

Hubert Green, a two-time major winner and World Golf Hall of Famer, passed away, succumbing to complications from throat cancer. Green was 71.

Dutch Rennert, a National League umpire from 1973 to 1992, who was known for his animated, booming strike calls, has died. He was 88.

Walter Bahr was the last living member of US men's soccer team that upset England at the World Cup​. He was 91. His sons, Matt and Chris, were kickers in the NFL.

A two-time Super Bowl winner and two-time NFL All-Pro offensive lineman, Keith Fahnhorst played 14 seasons in the league with the San Francisco 49ers. He was 66 years old.

Anne Donovan, the Basketball Hall of Famer who won a national championship at Old Dominion, two Olympic gold medals as a player and another as a coach, died Wednesday of heart failure. She was 56.

Tom McEwen, one of the most iconic figures in NHRA history, died at 81. McEwen won just five NHRA races, yet helped elevate the sport’s status when he came up with the idea of building a rivalry with Don ‘The Snake’ Prudhomme by acquiring the moniker of ‘The Mongoose.'

Maria Bueno, a Brazilian tennis great, who won three Wimbledon singles titles and four at the U.S. Open in the 1950s and 1960s, and helped usher in modern women's tennis, has died after battling mouth cancer. She was 78.​

Red Schoendienst, the Hall of Fame second baseman who managed the St. Louis Cardinals to two pennants and a World Series championship in the 1960s, died at 95.

Hall of Fame coach and administrator C.M. Newton, 88, dies

Legendary San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Dwight Clark died after a lengthy battle with Lou Gehrig's Disease. Clark was 61.

Former major league pitcher Bruce Kison, who helped the Pittsburgh Pirates to World Series titles in 1971 and 1979 (winning the first night World Series game in 1971) before becoming a major league scout, died of cancer. He was 68.

Scottish soccer legend and former Aberdeen midfielder Neale Cooper​​ died at age 54.

Mallory is the winningest coach in University of Indiana football ​history, leading the Hoosiers to six bowl appearances from 1984-96. He also coached at Colorado, Miami (Ohio) and Northern Illinois. He died from a brain injury suffered in a fall. He was 82.​

World Golf Hall of Fame member Carol Mann, who won 38 LPGA tournaments including two major championships, died at her home in the Woodlands, Texas, on May 21. She was 77.

Billy Cannon, LSU's former running back and only Heisman Trophy winner, died in his home on Sunday. He died at 80.

Former SEC commissioner Mike Slive, who led the league to unprecedented success both on and off the field and managed its growth from a regional conference to national giant during his 13-year tenure, died on Wednesday after a lengthy illness​.

Doug Ford, who died at the age of 95, was the oldest surviving Masters champion. He won the green jacket in 1957, taking home PGA Tour in the same year. He won 19 times on the tour.

The soccer pro's career included stints in England's Premier League with Aston Villa and the Bolton Wanderers. Samuel also played in Iran, and represented England and Trinidad & Tobago internationally. He was killed in a car crash at the age of 37. ​

Wesley College head coach Mike Drass, who guided the Wolverines to the NCAA Division III semifinals six times during his 26 seasons, died at the age of 57.

Longtime NFL coach Chuck Knox padded away at 86 after a lengthy battle with dementia. A three-time NFL Coach of the Year, Knox won 186 games as the head coach of the L.A. Rams, Buffalo Bills and Seattle Seahawks from 1973-1994.

Former Mississippi football coach, Billy Brewer died at the age of 83 after battling complications from a stroke he suffered in February. 

Bill Torrey, the general manager of the New York Islanders when they won four consecutive Stanley Cups in the 1980s and the first president of the Florida Panthers, died Thursday. The Panthers and the NHL announced Torrey's death. He was 83.

James Hylton, the 1966 NASCAR rookie of the year, was killed in an auto accident in Georgia on Saturday. Hylton was 83. His son James Harvey Hylton Jr. also was killed in the accident on I-85 in Franklin County, Ga. No other details were available.

Bennie Cunningham, a versatile tight end who starred at Clemson and won two Super Bowls with the Pittsburgh Steelers, died of cancer April 23. He was 63.

Davey Nelson, a Milwaukee Brewers broadcaster and former All-Star infielder who also coached in the majors, died April 22 after a long illness. He was 73.

Kona Schwenke, a Kahuku graduate who played on the defensive line for Notre Dame and in the NFL, died at the age of 25.

Gill Santos (left), served as the radio play-by-play announcer of the New England Patriots for 36 seasons, calling six of the team's Super Bowl appearances. He passed away on his 80th birthday and 57th wedding anniversary.

A member of the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame, Greer was a 10-time NBA All-Star and retired as the Philadelphia 76ers' all-time leading scorer. He passed away at 81 years old after a brief illness.​

Daryl Thomas, who was a starter on Indiana’s 1987 NCAA basketball championship team died from a heart attack at age 52.

Beloved Mets' icon Rusty Staub passed away at age 73. A prolific hitter, Staub compiled a lifetime .279 average with 2,716 hits, 292 homers, 499 doubles and a major league record-tying 25 pinch hit RBI in 2,951 games over 23 seasons with Houston, the Montreal Expos, Mets, Detroit Tigers and Texas Rangers from 1963-85.

Upshaw, who played college basketball at Illinois State and Hofstra, collapsed on the court during a NBA G League game while playing for the Grand Rapids Drive. He was taken to the hospital and died two days later at 26 years old.

Huizenga, a college dropout who built a business empire that included Blockbuster Entertainment and AutoNation passed away on March 22. He was also the former owner of the Miami Dolphins, a founding owner of the Florida Marlins and owner of the Florida Panthers. 

Ed Charles, who was a contributor to the Mets’ first World Series-winning team in 1969 and was nicknamed 'the Glider' for his smooth play at third base, died Thursday, according to the team. He was 84.

A successful auto dealer who bought the NFL's New Orleans Saints in 1985 and brought the franchise its only Super Bowl title, Benson also owned the NBA's New Orleans Pelicans since 2012. The 90-year-old had been hospitalized with flu symptoms before his death.

Augie Garrido, who won five College World Series titles with two schools and still ranks No. 1 on the career victories list in college baseball, died at the age of 79.

Broadcasting legend Woody Durham, known as "The Voice of the Tar Heels," passed away at his home from complications from Primary Progressive Aphasia. He was 76. He grew up  just outside Chapel Hill, graduated from North Carolina in 1963, and called games from 1971 to 2011. 

Sir Roger Bannister, first person to run a mile in under four minutes dies at 88.

Rice defensive end Blain Padgett died in his apartment. He was 21. Padgett recorded a defensive line-best 41 tackles in 2016 and had 3.5 career sacks. The 6-foot-5, 250-pounder saw a shoulder injury limit him to just three games in 2017.

Former Green Bay Packers linebacker Fred Carr passed away at 71. 

Russian hammer thrower Sergei Litvinov, who won a silver medal at the 1980 Moscow Olympics and a gold at the 1998 Seoul Olympics passed away at the age of 60.

Tito Francona, former Cleveland Indians outfielder and father of Terry Francona, passed away at the age of 84 at his home in New Brighton, England. 

Moon, was a two-time All-Star with the St. Louis Cardinals and Los Angeles Dodgers who died Saturday morning at age 87.

Former NBA player Rasual Butler died in a car crash on Jan. 31 in Studio City, Calif., Butler, a forward who averaged 7.5 points and 2.4 rebounds per game, played 13 seasons in the NBA for eight teams. 

Oscar Gamble, who played outfield and designated hitter for 17 seasons in the majors, died at 68.

Kevin Towers, a longtime baseball executive who assembled playoff teams in San Diego and Arizona, died of cancer at the age 56.

Jerry Sneva, the 1977 Indy 500 Rookie of the Year, died last weekend at the age of 68.

​Former Baylor women's basketball player Chameka Scott died of cancer at 33. Scott helped the Lady Bears win the program's first national championship in 2005, when she started 35 of the 36 games.​

USA Hockey Executive Jim Johannson died in his sleep unexpectadly in his Colorado home. He died at 53. 

Red Fisher a.k.a Saul Fisher the chronicler of Montreal hockey whose career spanned over seven decade. He died at 91.

NBA Hall of Famer and Celtics legend JoJo White died Tuesday after a battle with cancer according to multiple reports. He was 71.

Washington State quarterback Tyler Hilinski was found dead in an apartment in Pullman, Washington on Tuesday, 16th January 2018.

Cyrille Regis, former West Brom and England striker, dies at age 59. 

Hall of Fame umpire Doug Harvey died Jan. 13 due to natural causes. He was 87.

American motorsport legend Dan Gurney, 86, died on Jan. 14  from complications related to pneumonia. Gurney was the first driver to win in Formula One, IndyCar and NASCAR.

Keith Jackson, the legendary broadcaster who spent 56 years calling college football, including 15 Rose Bowls, died at 89. His final game before he retired was the 2006 thriller between USC and Texas at the famed game in Pasadena.

Carmen Cozza, who coached Yale for 32 seasons and led the Bulldogs to 10 Ivy League titles, was inducted in the College Football Hall of Fame in 2002. He died at 87.