Familiar faces were plentiful at TRIA Rink on Tuesday morning as the Minnesota Wild prepared for their first meeting with divisional rival Winnipeg at their morning skate.

Hanging out at the practice facility that did not exist when they were on the Minnesota roster, 2000s standouts Marian Gaborik, Brian Rolston and Pierre-Marc Bouchard got reacquainted with old friends like Wild broadcaster Tom Reid, and got to meet several of the current Wild players in advance of their appearances at Grand Casino Arena as part of the franchise’s 25th anniversary celebration.

Perhaps the best news for the Wild and their fans was a few familiar faces on the ice. Marcus Foligno practiced after missing the previous game due to an upper body injury. Alongside Foligno, Mats Zuccarello was on the ice for the first time this season as his recovery from a lower body injury continues.

After morning skate, Wild coach John Hynes listed Foligno as questionable to play versus the Jets, but the veteran was a full participant in warmups and played wing on the team’s third line with Vinnie Hinostroza at the other wing and Ryan Hartman at center.

The injury was the latest development in a start to the season for Foligno that has mirrored the rest of the Wild — namely, disappointing. He had no goals or assists in Minnesota’s first nine games, and is one of the players that they are counting on to provide more of a physical presence, which is among the things the Wild have lacked in the early going.

For Zuccarello, his work on Tuesday was the next step toward a return that the team hopes will come in November.

“Zuccy, it’s good to see him back out. He’s in that next level of progression for him where he’s starting to ramp it up a little bit individually,” Hynes said. “Now he’s back into team practices, which is good to see, too. For him, he has made some really good progress.”

Zuccarello, 38, was among the team leaders in assists last season with 54 in 69 games played, and would give the Wild another top six forward option upon returning to the lineup. He missed 13 games last season after getting hit below the belt by a teammate’s shot during a game — an ailment which required surgery in November 2024.

When the Wild announced his current injury in late September, they predicted Zuccarello would be out for up to eight weeks. Hynes said that is still the schedule they anticipate.

“Timeline remains the same,” Hynes said, noting that Zuccarello is not being exposed to any on-ice contact yet. “I think he’s in week five today, and it was six to eight (weeks). So he’s progressing well, and we’ll see where it goes from here.”

Hynes added that veteran defenseman Zach Bogosian, who missed his sixth consecutive game versus Winnipeg and has been seen wearing a walking boot, is considered week to week.

Johnson returns

Last month, Wild general manager Bill Guerin did not have an on-ice job available for veteran defenseman Jack Johnson, who participated in the Wild’s most recent training camp on a professional tryout, but was released before the regular season started.

Johnson, 38, played half of last season for Columbus and with more than 1,200 NHL games on his roster, is sliding toward retirement.

On Tuesday, Johnson was shadowing Guerin and some of the Wild’s hockey operations staff as the former Shattuck-St. Mary’s and University of Michigan standout begins learning the off-ice side of the NHL.

Guerin said he was happy to welcome Johnson back to Minnesota to get a look at the way they handle hockey operations, and it was reminiscent of 2010. That is when Guerin made the transition from playing for the Pittsburgh Penguins — the last stop in a 1,263-game NHL career — to a development coach role there.

He eventually worked his way up to assistant general manager in Pittsburgh before being hired to his first NHL general manager job with the Wild in 2019.

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Before the world’s top young hockey players get to St. Paul and Minneapolis for the 2026 World Junior Hockey Championship, eight of the national teams will hold training camps at a quartet of sites around Minnesota. Organizers have released the schedule for the pre-tournament series of exhibition games, which begin Dec. 16.

Duluth will host the teams from U.S., Finland and Germany at Amsoil Arena with Finland facing Germany on Dec. 19, U.S. vs. Germany on Dec. 21 and Finland vs. U.S. on Dec. 23.

The Sanford Center in Bemidji will be the home base for Czechia, Latvia and Slovakia, with Czechia playing Latvia on Dec. 19, Latvia vs. Slovakia on Dec. 21 and Slovakia vs. Czechia on Dec. 23.

Denmark will prep for the tournament at the Mayo Clinic Health System Event Center in Mankato, where Switzerland will scrimmage Minnesota State Mankato on Dec. 16 and Denmark will face Canada on Dec. 23.

At the Rochester Rec Center, Switzerland will hold its pre-tournament camp, with exhibition games versus Denmark on Dec. 21 and versus Sweden on Dec. 23.

Ticket information can be found on the mnsportsandevents.org website for both the pre-tournament series and for the World Juniors tournament games at Grand Casino Arena and 3M Arena at Mariucci, which begin on Dec. 26.

Blessed Htoo made the most of a golden opportunity to end what turned into a roller coaster of emotions for Como Park.

St. Paul Como Park attacker SK, top, celebrates with goalkeeper Louden DeGaetano (00) after they defeated Simley 4-3 in overtime of the Class 2A Semifinal of the Boys State Soccer Tournament at US Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Tuesday, Oct. 28, 2025. (Craig Lassig / Special to the Pioneer Press)

He does know that his tally with 5:42 left in double overtime means the Cougars will play for a state title after beating Simley 4-3 in a Class 2A boys soccer semifinal Tuesday at U.S. Bank Stadium.

A feed from Stephan N’da split a pair of defenders, getting the ball to Htoo racing into the box.

“I saw the keeper was shuffling to come out or not and then at the last (second) he came out, I went to the left and passed it into the goal,” Htoo said.

Unseeded in the tournament, Como Park (15-5-1) will face top-seeded Blake (18-1-2) in Friday’s public school vs. private school 2:45 p.m. final back in downtown Minneapolis.

“We want to represent what the people of St. Paul can bring to soccer,” said Cougars captain Henry Simmons. “We want to show the immigrants who come to St. Paul what they can do.”

Winning a second school title — the Cougars won the 2013 Class A crown — would be a case of climbing the ladder. Como Park, which finished fourth in the St. Paul City Conference, upset No. 3 New Ulm 3-1 in the quarterfinals. Simley (17-2-2) was the No. 2 seed.

St. Paul Como Park goalkeeper Ta Htoo, left, stops a shot by Simley defender Elvis Hernandez Paz (26) during the second half of the Class 2A Semifinal of the Boys State Soccer Tournament at US Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Tuesday, Oct. 28, 2025. St. Paul Como Park won 4-3 in overtime. (Craig Lassig / Special to the Pioneer Press)

“We’re happy to have made state for the first time in nine years, but we weren’t just happy to be here. After watching film of all seven other teams that qualified, we felt we could give anybody a game,” said coach Brendan Doyle.

Simley coach David Albornoz said the only thing his team did not do is win.

“You want to walk out of these games with a sense of pride that you have done everything you can do. … To come back from 3-1, to overcome a couple of mistakes and still be able to compete, we did everything we could. I’m extremely proud.”

It helps to have the recently named Class 2A Mr. Soccer in your lineup.

Simley’s Elvis Hernandez Paz and Michael Hernandez Ruiz, two of five finalists for the award, combined on a textbook give-and-go with Paz, the award winner, scoring in the 68th minute to make it 3-2.

Paz did so again with 2:06 left, converting a Luis Ramirez Reyes feed and tipping the ball over the Como Park goalkeeper a split-second before the players collided.

“He earned the title, Mr. Soccer. There’s a reason for it, and he showcased that today,” Albornoz said.

St. Paul Como Park fans celebrate after they defeated Simley in overtime during the Class 2A Semifinal of the Boys State Soccer Tournament at US Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Tuesday, Oct. 28, 2025. (Craig Lassig / Special to the Pioneer Press)

Htoo couldn’t have been in a better spot at the right time to make it 3-1 Como Park in the 58th minute, interrupting a punt attempt by Simley goalkeeper Dylan Gonzalez and scoring into an open net.

But Gonzalez more than redeemed himself and forced overtime with a leaping, fully extended one-handed tip to thwart a Patrick Tennison chip with 26 seconds left in regulation.

Pai Chi’s right-footed shot from 45 yards away was perfectly placed just under the crossbar for a 2-1 Como Park lead in the 31st minute. Doyle said Chi scored from 50 yards out in a section semifinal win over St. Paul Washington.

Blake 4, Northfield 1

Landon Bell, Jackson Fulton and Moises Hueta scored in the first half, and the Bears beat No. 4 Northfield 4-1.

James Lewis added a late goal for Blake, which seeks its third crown, and first in Class AA. It won Class A titles in 2008 and 2018.

Josue Lazaro scored for Northfield (12-4-5).

By SUZAN FRASER and MUNIR AHMED

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Peace talks between Pakistan and Afghanistan have failed in Istanbul after four days of negotiations, Pakistan’s information minister said before dawn Wednesday, accusing the Taliban government in Kabul of refusing to act against militants blamed for deadly cross-border attacks.

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The talks followed an earlier round in Doha that produced a ceasefire on Oct. 19 after deadly border clashes between the two sides left dozens dead, including soldiers, civilians and militants.

Pakistan accuses the Taliban of harboring militants linked to a surge in attacks, while Kabul denies its territory is being used against Pakistan.

Before dawn Wednesday, Pakistan’s Information Minister Attaullah Tarar took to social media platform X, saying the dialogue “failed to bring about any workable solution,” despite mediation by Qatar and Turkey.

There was no immediate comment from Kabul about Tarar’s remarks.

The latest development came hours after the state media in both countries said there was an impasse in the talks, with the state media from the both sides blaming each other for the failure to reach a deal.

Tarar said Pakistan at the request of brotherly countries Qatar and Turkey gave peace a chance and engaged with the Afghan Taliban government first in Doha and then in Istanbul.

He accused the Taliban of being “indifferent to Pakistan’s losses” even though “Pakistan has always desired, advocated and immensely sacrificed for peace and prosperity for the people of Afghanistan.”

Tarar said Pakistan is thankful to Qatar and Turkey for facilitating this dialogue, which was part of a broader diplomatic push to ease months of heightened tension between Islamabad and Kabul over cross-border attacks and militant safe havens — issues that have strained relations since the Taliban’s return to power in Afghanistan four years ago.

He said that “since the Taliban regime bears no responsibility towards the people of Afghanistan and thrives on war economy, it desires to drag and mire the Afghan people into a needless war.”

Tarar said “Pakistan’s patience has run its course,” and warned that Islamabad would “continue to take all possible measures necessary to protect our people from the menace of terrorism.”

Earlier, on Tuesday, three Pakistani security officials who had direct knowledge of the negotiations told The Associated Press that there was a deadlock in the talks in Istanbul over the reluctance of Kabul in accepting demands about assurances that Afghan soil not be used against Pakistan.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media. They said the host country was trying to end the deadlock so that the final round of the talks could resume as soon as possible.

People wait near the closed gate at the Spin Boldak border crossing with Pakistan, after the border was shut for nearly two weeks following clashes between Afghan and Pakistani forces, in Kandahar province, Afghanistan, Thursday, Oct. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Sibghatullah)

According to the Pakistani officials, the Taliban delegation was “not fully willing” to accept Pakistan’s proposals and continued to seek guidance from Kabul before making decisions.

Afghanistan-controlled media RTA made similar accusations against the Pakistani side, saying Kabul “made every effort to hold constructive talks,” but that the “Pakistani side does not seem to have this intention.”

As the latest round of the talks was underway in Turkey, U.S. President Donald Trump on Sunday pledged to help resolve the crisis between the two neighbors very quickly.

The recent fighting prompted Qatar to host the initial round of talks, which produced a ceasefire that both sides say is still holding despite the stalemate in Istanbul.

Islamabad-based security analyst Syed Mohammad Ali on Tuesday said Afghanistan’s strategy at the talks was to slow the diplomatic process and shift focus to other bilateral issues. He noted Afghanistan’s “reluctance to give clear, unambiguous and internationally verifiable commitment to act against Afghanistan-based Pakistani Taliban and other militants.”

Pakistan has seen a surge in militant attacks in recent years, mostly blamed on the Pakistani Taliban, or Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, a group closely allied to the Taliban in Afghanistan. Islamabad says the group is being sheltered in Afghanistan since the Taliban seized power in 2021.

Authorities in Pakistan have said the country’s military earlier this month targeted hideouts of the TTP in Afghanistan. It triggered deadly clashes between the two countries until Qatar brokered the ceasefire.

All border crossings between the two sides have remained shut for more than two weeks, with trucks carrying goods stranded pending the reopening of key trade routes.

Ahmed reported from Islamabad. Associated Press writer Abdul Qahar contributed to this story from Jalalabad, Afghanistan.