Sports

Auston Matthews extension gives Leafs elusive long-term stability

Published

1 year ago

August 24, 2023

Before Auston Matthews signed a four-year, $53-million extension with the Toronto Maple Leafs on Wednesday, the team was looking at a murky future.

Having Matthews on the books through 2027-28 is no guarantee of success, whether that means deep playoff runs or the end of the team’s infamous Stanley Cup drought. It does mean that this team is not only trying to remain a championship contender for most of the decade, but it has a strong centerpiece to build around.

Auston Matthews should help keep the Maple Leafs competitive for the length of his extension. (China Wong/NHLI via Getty Images)

On Wednesday morning, the Maple Leafs had just three players under contract past 2024-25: Morgan Rielly, David Kämpf, Calle Järnkrok and Ryan Reaves. While Rielly is a solid top-pair defender, that’s a tough group to hang your hopes on.

It’s likely the Maple Leafs would have retained some of their forward core deeper into the future, as Mitch Marner and John Tavares are locals — who by all accounts want to remain with the team — and William Nylander seems to want to stay in Toronto, too.

If you mapped out all of the scenarios that could happen between now and the end of the 2024-25 season, very few of them would’ve had the Maple Leafs’ top forwards all walking and Toronto rebuilding around a fat pile of cap space. It was technically on the table, though, and now it isn’t.

Because the Maple Leafs’ identity in recent years revolved around their best four forwards and those players — outside of Tavares — were all relatively young, it was always easy to envision the team as a perpetual contender.

With all four approaching free agency, that wasn’t the case.

Also, the simple fact is that not one of Marner, Tavares or Nylander provides the Maple Leafs with the same competitive floor Matthews does. Now the Maple Leafs have one of the best 10 players in the NHL as their top-line center for four years beyond next season — a guy who is simultaneously one of the NHL’s best scorers and a solid defensive presence.

There are teams that Marner would be the best player on, but we don’t have proof of concept for the playmaking winger leading a team. Tavares is ill-equipped to handle the matchups Matthews takes on a nightly basis. He could be a nominal top center, but there isn’t a Stanley Cup contender that would be happy with him in that role. Nylander is an excellent offensive player, but he’s not in the same conversation as Matthews.

None of those players are as flawed as some of their loudest critics think they are, and Matthews is far from perfect. The difference is that Matthews plus uncertainty is something you can work with. Some combination of the other guys with the absence of one of the NHL’s premier two-way pivots on the top line is a more precarious situation.

There are those who will come down against this deal because Matthews is taking the highest AAV in NHL history ($13.25 million) and he isn’t the best player in the league. That’s a fair assessment, but he utilized the leverage he had available to him and was willing to bet on himself by shunning the kind of maximum-length extension most NHL superstars take.

It’s possible the sheer weight of this contract will seem onerous at times, but when Matthews signed his previous deal he made 14.3% of the salary cap in his first year, and that number never fell below 13.9% due to the flat cap.

This time around, he’s projected to make 15.1% of the cap in the first year of his extension, with that number dropping to 14.4% in his second year. For much of this deal he could effectively be making less than he did on his previous contract from the Maple Leafs’ perspective.

The extension is undoubtedly rich. Toronto would’ve hoped to sign a longer deal, and Matthews has yet to deliver playoff glory, but this is a good development for the Maple Leafs. By inking their franchise player, the Leafs bought a clear sense of direction, another sizeable window, and the kind of cost certainty that should help them map out their future.

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Fernandez and Dabrowski headline Canadian lineup for Billie Jean King Cup Finals

Published

3 hours ago

September 16, 2024

Anne Joseph

TORONTO – Singles star Leylah Fernandez and doubles specialist Gabriela Dabrowski will anchor Canada’s five-player lineup when the team tries to defend its Billie Jean King Cup title in mid-November.

The 26th-ranked Fernandez, the 2021 U.S. Open finalist from Laval, Que., is the lone Canadian in the top 100 of the WTA Tour’s singles rankings.

Dabrowski, from Ottawa, is ranked fourth on the doubles list. The 2023 U.S. Open women’s doubles champion won mixed doubles bronze with Felix Auger-Aliassime at the recent Paris Olympics.

Marina Stakusic of Mississauga, Ont., returns after a breakout performance last year, capped by her singles win in Canada’s 2-0 victory over Italy in the final. Vancouver’s Rebecca Marino is also back and Bianca Andreescu, the 2019 U.S. Open champion from Mississauga, Ont., returns to the squad for the first time since 2022.

“Winning the Billie Jean King Cup in 2023 was a dream come true for us, and not only that, but I feel like we made a statement to the world about the strength of this nation when it comes to tennis,” Canada captain Heidi El Tabakh said Monday in a release. “Once again, we have a very strong team this year with Bianca joining Leylah, Gaby, Rebecca and Marina, making it an extremely powerful team that is more than capable of going all the way.

“At the end of the day, our goal is to make Canada proud, and we’ll do our best to bring the same level of effort and excitement that we had in last year’s finals.”

Fernandez, who beat Jasmine Paolini to clinch Canada’s first-ever title at the competition, is ranked No. 42 in doubles.

Canada, which received an automatic berth as defending champion, will play the winner of the first-round tie between Great Britain and Germany on Nov. 17 at Malaga’s Martin Carpena Arena.

Australia, Italy and wild-card entry Czechia also received first-round byes. The tournament, which continues through Nov. 20, also includes host Spain, Slovakia, the United States, Poland, Japan and Romania.

Stakusic is up 27 spots to No. 128 in the latest world singles rankings. Marino is at No. 134 and Andreescu, the 2019 U.S. Open champion, is ranked 167th.

Canada will look to become the first team since Czechia in 2016 to successfully defend its Billie Jean King Cup title.

Malaga will also host the Nov. 19-24 Davis Cup Final 8. The Canadian men qualified over the weekend with a 2-1 victory over Great Britain in Manchester.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 16, 2024.

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Penguins re-sign Crosby to two-year extension that runs through 2026-27 season

Published

3 hours ago

September 16, 2024

Anne Joseph

PITTSBURGH – Sidney Crosby plans to remain a Pittsburgh Penguin for at least three more years.

The Penguins announced on Monday that they re-signed the 37-year-old from Cole Harbour, N.S., to a two-year contract extension that has an average annual value of US$8.7 million. The deal runs through the 2026-27 season.

Crosby was eligible to sign an extension on July 1 with him entering the final season of a 12-year, $104.4-million deal that carries an $8.7-million salary cap hit.

At the NHL/NHLPA player media tour in Las Vegas last Monday, he said things were positive and he was optimistic about a deal getting done.

The three-time Stanley Cup champion is coming off a 42-goal, 94-point campaign that saw him finish tied for 12th in the league scoring race.

Crosby has spent all 19 of his NHL seasons in Pittsburgh, amassing 592 goals and 1,004 assists in 1,272 career games.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 16, 2024.

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Slovenia’s Tadej Pogacar wins Grand Prix Cycliste de Montreal

Published

14 hours ago

September 16, 2024

Anne Joseph

MONTREAL – Tadej Pogacar was so dominant on Sunday, Canada’s Michael Woods called it a race for second.

Pogacar, a three-time Tour de France champion from Slovenia, pedalled to a resounding victory at the Grand Prix Cycliste de Montreal.

The UAE Team Emirates leader crossed the finish line 24 seconds ahead of Spain’s Pello Bilbao of Bahrain — Victorious to win the demanding 209.1-kilometre race on a sunny, 28 C day in Montreal. France’s Julian Alaphilippe of Soudal Quick-Step was third.

“He’s the greatest rider of all time, he’s a formidable opponent,” said Woods, who finished 45 seconds behind the leader in eighth. “If you’re not at your very, very best, then you can forget racing with him, and today was kind of representative of that.

“He’s at such a different level that if you follow him, it can be lights out.”

Pogacar slowed down before the last turn to celebrate with the crowd, high-five fans on Avenue du Parc and cruise past the finish line with his arms in the air after more than five hours on the bike.

The 25-year-old joined Belgium’s Greg Van Avermaet as the only multi-time winners in Montreal after claiming the race in 2022. He also redeemed a seventh-place finish at the Quebec City Grand Prix on Friday.

“I was disappointed, because I had such good legs that I didn’t do better than seventh,” Pogacar said. “To bounce back after seventh to victory here, it’s just an incredible feeling.”

It’s Pogacar’s latest win in a dominant year that includes victories at the Tour de France and Giro d’Italia.

Ottawa’s Woods (Israel Premier-Tech) tied a career-best in front of the home crowd in Montreal, but hoped for more after claiming a stage at the Spanish Vuelta two weeks ago.

“I wanted a better result,” the 37-year-old rider said. “My goal was a podium, but at the same time I’m happy with the performance. In bike racing, you can’t always get the result you want and I felt like I raced really well, I animated the race, I felt like I was up there.”

Pogacar completed the 17 climbs up and down Mount Royal near downtown in five hours 28 minutes 15 seconds.

He made his move with 23.3 kilometres to go, leaving the peloton in his dust as he pedalled into the lead — one he never relinquished.

Bilbao, Alaphilippe, Alex Aranburu (Movistar Team) and Bart Lemmen (Visma–Lease) chased in a group behind him, with Bilbao ultimately separating himself from the pack. But he never came close to catching Pogacar, who built a 35-second lead with one lap left to go.

“It was still a really hard race today, but the team was on point,” Pogacar said. “We did really how we planned, and the race situation was good for us. We make it hard in the last final laps, and they set me up for a (takeover) two laps to go, and it was all perfect.”

Ottawa’s Derek Gee, who placed ninth in this year’s Tour de France, finished 48th in Montreal, and called it a “hard day” in the heat.

“I think everyone knows when you see Tadej on the start line that it’s just going to be full gas,” Gee said.

Israel Premier-Tech teammate Hugo Houle of Sainte-Perpétue, Que., was 51st.

Houle said he heard Pogacar inform his teammates on the radio that he was ready to attack with two laps left in the race.

“I said then, well, clearly it’s over for me,” Houle said. “You see, cycling isn’t that complicated.”

Australia’s Michael Matthews won the Quebec City GP for a record third time on Friday, but did not finish in Montreal. The two races are the only North American events on the UCI World Tour.

Michael Leonard of Oakville, Ont., and Gil Gelders and Dries De Bondt of Belgium broke away from the peloton during the second lap. Leonard led the majority of the race before losing pace with 45 kilometres to go.

Only 89 of 169 riders from 24 teams — including the Canadian national team — completed the gruelling race that features 4,573 metres in total altitude.

Next up, the riders will head to the world championships in Zurich, Switzerland from Sept. 21 to 29.

Pogacar will try to join Eddy Merckx (1974) and Stephen Roche (1987) as the only men to win three major titles in a season — known as the Triple Crown.

“Today gave me a lot of confidence, motivation,” Pogacar said. “I think we are ready for world championships.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 15, 2024.

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