Bettman: Research ‘remains nascent’ST. PAUL, Minn. — NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman’s reluctance to link hits to the head in hockey with a degenerative brain disease found in several deceased former players has reached Congress.League attorneys have filed Bettman’s letter to Connecticut Sen. Richard Blumenthal with U.S. District Judge Susan Richard Nelson, who’s presiding over a class-action concussion lawsuit against the NHL. Bettman’s 24-page response to Blumenthal was dated Friday. He said research on the link between concussions and chronic traumatic encephalopathy “remains nascent.”The Connecticut Democrat had written June 23 to Bettman about the league’s stance on CTE.Blumenthal cited in his letter the discovery of CTE in the brains of six former players after their deaths in recent years. He is the ranking member of the Senate subcommittee on consumer protection, product safety, insurance and data security.

Senators, Hoffman agree to 4-year dealOttawa Senators general manager Pierre Dorion was so pleased to get Mike Hoffman under contract that he hugged another member of the club’s management team.The Senators and Hoffman, Ottawa’s leading scorer this past season, avoided going to arbitration by agreeing to a four-year contract worth nearly $21 million.“This is a great day for the organization. I shouldn’t tell you this, but I actually hugged (director of hockey operations) Randy Lee today,” Dorion said on a conference call Wednesday shortly after the announcement of the deal, which carries a $5.19 million annual cap hit.“Obviously we see Mike as a huge piece of our team going forward.”Hoffman led the Senators in goals for the second straight season, hitting a career high with 29 goals. He also set career highs with 30 assists, 59 points and a team-leading nine power-play goals.

Clemson’s Watson leads all-ACC teamAtlantic Coast Conference preseason player of the year Deshaun Watson leads 10 Clemson players on the preseason all-league team.The ACC announced the team Wednesday following a vote of 191 media members at last week’s league media days.Watson — a 2015 Heisman Trophy finalist who became the first player in Bowl Subdivision history to pass for 4,000 yards and rush for 1,000 more in one season — was one of seven offensive players from the Tigers on the team.Florida State had five players on the preseason team, led by running back Dalvin Cook. Louisville and North Carolina had three selections apiece, led by Tar Heels running back Elijah Hood. Cook set school records with 1,691 yards rushing and 1,935 all-purpose yards.

Blazers’ McCollum signs 4-year dealPORTLAND, Ore. — The Portland Trail Blazers formally signed guard CJ McCollum to a four-year contract extension Wednesday.The terms of the deal were not disclosed by the team, but a person familiar with it told The Associated Press on Monday that it is worth $106 million.McCollum was named the NBA’s 2016 Most Improved Player after averaging 20.8 points, 3.2 rebounds and 4.3 assists during the regular season.