Tom Ward, the longtime director of hockey at Shattuck-St. Mary's School and the boys' prep team coach there, was hired by the NHL's Buffalo Sabres to be one of their assistant coaches.

Ward started coaching at the Faribault school in 1999 and became director in 2006. During his tenure at Shattuck-St. Mary's, the boys' and girls' hockey programs won 22 national championships and he personally coached the boys' prep team to eight national titles.

Numerous future NHL players and Olympians were hockey players at Shattuck-St. Mary's during Ward's time there.

Day for exotic races

Saturday will be Extreme Race Day at Canterbury Park. Camels, ostriches and zebras will compete between the usual live horse races.

Race six will be a bit different though. It will be the battle of the surfaces, featuring horses running 11⁄16 miles on the dirt and 1 mile and 70 yards on the turf in one pari-mutuel race.

The first horse race will be at 12:45 p.m. Exotic animal races will be held after horse races three, six and eight.

Etc.

• About 85 percent of the 11,600 spots for the Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon on Oct. 9 have been filled. … The marathon was recently honored with one of the 12 Facility of Merit awards given by the National Center for Spectator Sports Safety and Security.