Alexei Cherepanov had heart problems and probably should not have been allowed to play in a game in which he collapsed and died, a regional investigator in Moscow suggested yesterday.

Yulia Zhukova said Cherepanov, who died Monday playing for Avangard Omsk in a Continental Hockey League game outside of Moscow, apparently had chronic ischemia – a medical condition when not enough blood gets to the heart or other organs.

“Checks will be conducted to clarify, in particular, why the sportsman with such an illness went onto the ice,” Zhukova said.

Cherepanov's agent, however, said NHL tests showed him to be healthy.

A lawmaker suggested that the 19-year-old first-round draft pick for the New York Rangers may have died due to negligence on the part of paramedics.

Pavel Krasheninnikov, who sits on the Russian Hockey Federation's supervisory council and is a member of the State Duma, said there was no ambulance on duty at the Moscow region arena where Cherepanov was playing.

He also asserted emergency workers took too long to respond and didn't have a defibrillator – a medical machine that shocks the heart. It was unclear how much time it took paramedics to respond.

MORE NHL

Patrick O'Sullivan, Jarret Stoll and Tom Preissing scored power-play goals, Wayne Simmonds got his first NHL goal, and the host Los Angeles Kings rallied from a sluggish start to beat the Anaheim Ducks 6-3 for their first victory of the season.

New York Islanders defenseman Radek Martinek will be out four to six weeks because of an unidentified upper-body injury sustained during a game last weekend.

Sabres forward Jochen Hecht will miss at least two weeks after having surgery to repair an injured finger.

GOLF

Padraig Harrington and Jim Furyk shot 2-under 68s and were tied for the lead after the first round of the PGA Grand Slam of Golf in Tucker's Town, Bermuda. Retief Goosen shot a par 70 and fellow South African Trevor Immelman was at 6-over 76 in a strong wind at Mid Ocean Club.

The San Diego State women's golf team shot 319 to drop into a tie for 15th in the 16-team field after two rounds of the 54-hole Give 'Em Five Invitational in Las Cruces, N.M. SDSU freshman Malin Enarsson entered the day tied for ninth, but dropped to 24th with a 7-over 79.

GYMNASTICS

Olympic all-round champion Nastia Liukin was named Sportswoman of the Year by the Women's Sports Foundation. Liukin won five Olympic medals in Beijing with her elegant routines.

CYCLING

Lance Armstrong has expressed doubts about racing in next year's Tour de France. The American, who agreed Monday to ride in next year's Giro d'Italia, said in an interview published yesterday that he might not go for an eighth Tour de France title after all. “Everyone knows its importance, but the problems that I have with the organizers, journalists and fans could distract me from my mission – focusing the world's attention on the battle against cancer.”

Third-place Tour de France finisher Bernhard Kohl will be dropped from the Silence-Lotto team after becoming the latest cyclist caught using the new blood booster CERA.

COLLEGE FOOTBALL

Kevin Lopina will start at quarterback when Washington State hosts No. 6 USC on Saturday in Pullman, coach Paul Wulff said. That's after Marshall Lobbestael tore knee ligaments last weekend at Oregon State. Lopina has missed the past three games after breaking a bone in his back.

Two Toledo players arrested outside a bar just hours after the Rockets beat Michigan on Saturday – receiver Nick Moore and defensive end Albertson Alexandre – will not start this weekend against Northern Illinois.

COLLEGE BASKETBALL

USC guard Jacki Gemelos injured her knee again and the highly touted prep star will miss her third straight season with the Trojans. Gemelos hurt her left knee during a workout Monday, suffering a torn anterior cruciate ligament and meniscus tear. Previously, she tore the ACL in her right knee twice.

SOCCER

FC Barcelona will submit a bid today to bring a Major League Soccer franchise back to South Florida. The Spanish club is partnering with Marcelo Claure, a Miami resident and owner of FC Bolivar. The deal would make Barcelona the first club in Europe to have a direct tie to MLS.

Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank submitted a bid for a MLS expansion team in the city. Blank, who also owns the Arena Football League's Georgia Force, made the announcement through his management and investment company, the AMB Group.

Aaron Pitchkolan's second goal of the game in the 89th minute snapped a tie to give FC Dallas a 3-2 victory over Mexican first division club Tigres UANL in a friendly in Frisco, Texas.

Two late goals allowed Uruguay to salvage a 2-2 draw against host Bolivia in South American qualifying for the World Cup.

SPORTS AND COURTS

Kansas City Chiefs running back Larry Johnson has been charged with simple assault for allegedly pushing a woman at a Kansas City nightclub in February, the third time he has faced assault charges against a woman.

SPORTS AND DRUGS

Federal prosecutors in San Francisco are asking a judge to send track coach Trevor Graham to prison for 10 months while Graham's lawyers are calling for probation. A jury convicted Graham of lying to sports doping investigators about his connection to an admitted steroids dealer.

TENNIS

Rafael Nadal moved within two wins of clinching the year-end No. 1 ranking, defeating Ernests Gulbis 7-5, 3-6, 6-3 to reach the third round of the Madrid Masters in Spain. Next up for Nadal, the 2005 Madrid champion, will be 15th-ranked Richard Gasquet. Gasquet overcame 23 aces by Mardy Fish to win 6-7 (3-7), 6-4, 6-3.

Sixth-seeded Patty Schnyder and seventh-seeded Anna Chakvetadze lost in the first round at the Zurich Open in Switzerland. Schnyder, who won in Bali last month, was upset by Czech teenager Petra Kvitova 6-4, 3-6, 6-4. Chakvetadze was beaten by Romanian qualifier Monica Niculescu 3-6, 6-3, 6-2, her fifth loss in six matches since reaching the final in New Haven, Conn., in August.

HORSE RACING

New York toughened its steroids policy for racehorses, following the lead of the two other states that hold Triple Crown races. The New York State Racing and Wagering Board said the new rules take effect Jan. 1 at all thoroughbred and standardbred tracks in the state. That includes Belmont Park, home of the Belmont Stakes, the third leg of the Triple Crown. The new rules set limits for steroids that are permitted.

DEATH

Kevin Foster, a pitcher who spent seven years in the majors mostly with the Chicago Cubs and Philadelphia Phillies, has died of cancer. He was 39. He died in an Oklahoma City hospital Saturday after a six-month bout with renal cell carcinoma, brother Mark Foster said.

– FROM NEWS SERVICES