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NHL, NBA to return Saturday as leagues reschedule after protests over Jacob Blake shooting – CBC.ca

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The professional sports schedule is busier Friday after a string of postponements the past two days, but it won’t be back to normal just yet.

The NBA announced Friday it will resume its playoffs on Saturday after three days without games in the aftermath of the police shooting of Jacob Blake, a Black man, in Kenosha, Wis., last weekend.

The NBA and the National Basketball Players Association made the announcement in a joint statement.

The Toronto Raptors will start their best-of-seven NBA Eastern Conference semifinal against the Boston Celtics on Sunday at 1 p.m. ET.

The NHL, meanwhile, will have a second straight day without games on Friday before it resumes its playoff schedule on Saturday with three games in Toronto and Edmonton.

WATCH | Powerful pause for the sporting world:

Devin Heroux of CBC Sports reflects on a week in sports that saw a united show of solidarity across professional leagues in support of racial justice. 2:48

The Boston Bruins and Tampa Bay Lightning kick things off Saturday at 12 p.m. ET with Game 4 of their Eastern Conference semifinal in Toronto. The New York Islanders and Philadelphia Flyers square off in Game 4 of their series on Saturday night in Toronto, and the Vancouver Canucks face the Vegas Golden Knights in Game 3 of their Western Conference semifinal in the final game of the night in Edmonton.

“It’s about any type of social injustice and racism. But obviously hockey is close to our hearts and right now it’s about supporting our fellow players and be there for them and supporting them,” Bruins captain Patrice Bergeron said. “Within the hockey world we definitely want to accomplish some things, but then that also means to go broader than that and help in society as well and try to bring change.”

Lightning defenceman Luke Schenn said the two-day pause gave players time to educate themselves.

“It doesn’t matter who was here first. The whole point of the conversation now is that we’re all having the conversation at this point in time and we’re all looking to educate ourselves and wanting to improve,” he said.

“We all realize that nothing’s going to be fixed by tomorrow morning, but this is a situation where everyone needs to continue to learn and ask questions and do what’s right, be a good person in this world. Educate your kids and teach them and grow and show them the right way. It definitely is a long-term thing, but the whole point of the pause was to get everyone to sit back and listen and reflect.”

WATCH | Rob Pizzo recaps historic day for the NHL:

In his daily recap, Rob Pizzo breaks down the last 24 hours that led to the NHL and NHLPA postponing their games. 2:47

NBA forms social justice coalition

The NBA and its players also agreed to resume after establishing a commitment to move forward in three areas.

The NBA and its players will form a social justice coalition; franchise governors will work with local elections officials to convert team-owned arenas into voting locations for the U.S. election in November; and the league will work with players and network partners to create advertising spots in each playoff game dedicated to promoting greater civic engagement and raising awareness around voter access.

The Raptors were one of at least four teams to cancel planned media sessions on Friday as they awaited clarity on the NBA’s situation.

An emotional Chris Paul, the union president, detailed the events of the previous two days, when players upset by the latest police shooting of a Black man left them considering leaving the Disney campus and going home.

“We’re all hurt, we’re all tired of just seeing the same thing over and over again and everybody just expects us to be OK just because we get paid great money,” Paul said. “We’re human, we have real feelings and I’m glad that we got a chance to get in a room and talk with one another and not just cross paths and say good luck in your game today.”

The Milwaukee Bucks triggered two days of cancellations by refusing to take the court Wednesday to protest social and racial injustice.

Newest Blue Jay hopes protests spark change

One of the leaders on a Seattle team that decided to sit out a game Wednesday to protest racial and social injustice, pitcher Taijuan Walker hopes the actions of the Mariners and other big-league clubs will help keep the conversation going.

“I think it was huge for all the teams just to send that message,” he said Friday, a day after being traded to the Toronto Blue Jays. “Instead of just speaking words, we are going to take action.”

The Blue Jays and Boston Red Sox sat out Thursday night’s game in Buffalo, N.Y., with the game set to be made up in a doubleheader on Sept. 4.

“Moving forward it’s just to continue to talk about it, to have those really tough conversations and learn,” said Walker, who was wearing a Black Lives Matter T-shirt on a video call with reporters.

“And try to figure out a way to help, once you do learn and once you are educated.”

Toronto was set to return to action Friday night against the visiting Baltimore Orioles. Walker, the lone African-American player on the Blue Jays, was tabbed to make his first start for Toronto on Saturday.

Walker is a member of the Players Alliance, a group of more than 100 current and former Black major leaguers working to combat racial injustice. Those players will be donating salary from Thursday and Friday in honour of Jackie Robinson Day.

It has been a whirlwind week for the 28-year-old native of Shreveport, La.

Walker, who lives in Paradise Valley, Ariz., said he has family in Louisiana — including his father in the coastal city of Lake Charles — who “lost everything,” including property and belongings after Hurricane Laura lashed the state.

“It’s pretty emotional for me and for them too,” he said, his voice cracking.

Action resumes

Tennis also returns after play was postponed Thursday. Canadian Milos Raonic is in semifinal action at the Western & Southern Open in New York.

Major League Soccer is resuming its season after several midweek matches were postponed when players decided not to play. The league said Friday that the move comes after a “period of reflection and conversation” with the group Black Players for Change, other league players and the MLS Players Association.

“It was really important for us as Black athletes to take the stand that we did on Wednesday to remind people that this needs to be a priority for us, especially within these league that have so many Black athletes,” said D.C. United goalkeeper Earl Edwards Jr., a member of the executive board of Black Players For Change. “We need to prioritize our lives and do everything they can to to make sure our lives are being seen equally in this country.”

A game in Montreal between the Impact and Toronto FC is scheduled for Friday night after five of the league’s last six games were postponed on Wednesday.

The WNBA also resumes tonight with three games after postponing games the past two days at its bubble in Bradenton, Fla.

Kayla Alexander of Milton, Ont., and Bridget Carleton of Chatham, Ont., will play for the Minnesota Lynx against the Atlanta Dream in the first game on Friday night.

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Canada’s Marina Stakusic falls in Guadalajara Open quarterfinals

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GUADALAJARA, Mexico – Canada’s Marina Stakusic fell 6-4, 6-3 to Poland’s Magdalena Frech in the quarterfinals of the Guadalajara Open tennis tournament on Friday.

The 19-year-old from Mississauga, Ont., won 61 per cent of her first-serve points and broke on just one of her six opportunities.

Stakusic had upset top-seeded Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia 6-3, 5-7, 7-6 (0) on Thursday night to advance.

In the opening round, Stakusic defeated Slovakia’s Anna Karolína Schmiedlová 6-2, 6-4 on Tuesday.

The fifth-seeded Frech won 62 per cent of her first-serve points and converted on three of her nine break point opportunities.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

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Kirk’s walk-off single in 11th inning lifts Blue Jays past Cardinals 4-3

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TORONTO – Alejandro Kirk’s long single with the bases loaded provided the Toronto Blue Jays with a walk-off 4-3 win in the 11th inning of their series opener against the St. Louis Cardinals on Friday.

With the Cardinals outfield in, Kirk drove a shot off the base of the left-field wall to give the Blue Jays (70-78) their fourth win in 11 outings and halt the Cardinals’ (74-73) two-game win streak before 30,380 at Rogers Centre.

Kirk enjoyed a two-hit, two-RBI outing.

Erik Swanson (2-2) pitched a perfect 11th inning for the win, while Cardinals reliever Ryan Fernandez (1-5) took the loss.

Blue Jays starter Kevin Gausman enjoyed a seven-inning, 104-pitch outing. He surrendered his two runs on nine hits and two walks and fanned only two Cardinals.

He gave way to reliever Genesis Cabrera, who gave up a one-out homer to Thomas Saggese, his first in 2024, that tied the game in the eighth.

The Cardinals started swiftly with four straight singles to open the game. But they exited the first inning with only two runs on an RBI single to centre from Nolan Arendao and a fielder’s choice from Saggese.

Gausman required 28 pitches to escape the first inning but settled down to allow his teammates to snatch the lead in the fourth.

He also deftly pitched out of threats from the visitors in the fifth, sixth and seventh thanks to some solid defence, including Will Wagner’s diving stop, which led to a double play to end the fifth inning.

George Springer led off with a walk and stole second base. He advanced to third on Nathan Lukes’s single and scored when Vladimir Guerrero Jr. knocked in his 95th run with a double off the left-field wall.

Lukes scored on a sacrifice fly to left field from Spencer Horwitz. Guerrero touched home on Kirk’s two-out single to right.

In the ninth, Guerrero made a critical diving catch on an Arenado grounder to throw out the Cardinals’ infielder, with reliever Tommy Nance covering first. The defensive gem ended the inning with a runner on second base.

St. Louis starter Erick Fedde faced the minimum night batters in the first three innings thanks to a pair of double plays. He lasted five innings, giving up three runs on six hits and a walk with three strikeouts.

ON DECK

Toronto ace Jose Berrios (15-9) will start the second of the three-game series on Saturday. He has a six-game win streak.

The Cardinals will counter with righty Kyle Gibson (8-6).

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

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Stampeders return to Maier at QB eyeing chance to get on track against Alouettes

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CALGARY – Mired in their first four-game losing skid in 20 years, the Calgary Stampeders are going back to Jake Maier at quarterback on Saturday after he was benched for a game.

It won’t be an easy assignment.

Visiting McMahon Stadium are the Eastern Conference-leading Montreal Alouettes (10-2) who own the CFL’s best record. The Stampeders (4-8) have fallen to last in the Western Conference.

“Six games is plenty of time, but also it is just six games,” said Maier. “We’ve got to be able to get on the right track.”

Calgary is in danger of missing the playoffs for the first time since 2004.

“I do still believe in this team,” said Stampeders’ head coach and general manager Dave Dickenson. “I want to see improvement, though. I want to see guys on a weekly basis elevating their game, and we haven’t been doing that.”

Maier is one of the guys under the microscope. Two weeks ago, the second-year starter threw four interceptions in a 35-20 home loss to the Edmonton Elks.

After his replacement, rookie Logan Bonner, threw five picks in last week’s 37-16 loss to the Elks in Edmonton, the football is back in Maier’s hands.

“Any time you fail or something doesn’t go your way in life, does it stink in the moment? Yeah. But then the days go on and you learn things about yourself and you learn how to prepare a little bit better,” said Maier. “It makes you mentally tougher.”

Dickenson wants to see his quarterback making better decisions with the football.

“Things are going to happen, interceptions will happen, but try to take calculated risks, rather than just putting the ball up there and hoping that we catch it,” said Dickenson.

A former quarterback himself, he knows the importance of that vital position.

“You cannot win without good quarterback play,” Dickenson said. “You’ve got to be able to make some plays — off-schedule plays, move-around plays, plays that break down, plays that aren’t designed perfectly, but somehow you found the right guy, and then those big throws where you’re taking that hit.”

But it’s going to take a team effort, and that includes the club’s receiving corp.

“We always have to band together because we need everything to go right for our receivers to get the ball,” said Nik Lewis, the Stampeders’ receivers coach. “The running back has to pick up the blitz, the o-line has to block, the quarterback has to make the right reads, and then give us a catchable ball.”

Lewis brings a unique perspective to this season’s frustrations as he was a 22-year-old rookie in Calgary in 2004 when the Stamps went 4-14 under coach Matt Dunigan. They turned it around the next season and haven’t missed the playoffs since.”

“Thinking back and just looking at it, there’s just got to be an ultimate belief that you can get it done. Look at Montreal, they were 6-7 last year and they’ve gone 18-2 since then,” said Lewis.

Montreal is also looking to rebound from a 37-23 loss to the B.C. Lions last week. But for head coach Jason Maas, he says his team’s mindset doesn’t change, regardless of what happened the previous week.

“Last year when we went through a four-game losing streak, you couldn’t tell if we were on a four-game winning streak or a four-game losing streak by the way the guys were in the building, the way we prepared, the type of work ethic we have,” said Maas. “All our standards are set, so that’s all we focus on.”

While they may have already clinched a playoff spot, Alouettes’ quarterback Cody Fajardo says this closing stretch remains critical because they want to finish the season strong, just like last year when they won their final five regular-season games before ultimately winning the Grey Cup.

“It doesn’t matter about what you do at the beginning of the year,” said Fajardo. “All that matters is how you end the year and how well you’re playing going into the playoffs so that’s what these games are about.”

The Alouettes’ are kicking off a three-game road stretch, one Fajardo looks forward to.

“You understand what kind of team you have when you play on the road because it’s us versus the world mentality and you can feel everybody against you,” said Fajardo. “Plus, I always tend to find more joy in silencing thousands of people than bringing thousands of people to their feet.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.

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