TORONTO — Jason Spezza is of the vintage where his early hockey wasn’t all of the organized variety. He actually grew up skating on some of the 50-plus outdoor rinks around the city.
“Lots of memories from the outdoor rinks in and around Toronto,” he said. “Lots of time outside.”
It was getting out in the open air and having a few laughs that he most cherished about Thursday’s Maple Leafs practice in front of a large gathering of fans at Nathan Phillips Square.
In fact, this is part of what drew Spezza home for his 17th NHL season.
Fans watch the Toronto Maple Leafs during an outdoor three-on-three game at Nathan Phillips Square in Toronto on Thursday, January 9, 2020. (Nathan Denette/CP)
The one-year contract he signed for a league-minimum $700,000 brought him close to family and provided a cherished opportunity to chase the Stanley Cup, but it also gave him a chance to live life inside the NHL’s largest fishbowl. To rekindle an allegiance he built as a kid and abandoned as a top draft choice who became a star in Ottawa.
To experience an afternoon where a significant number of citizens abandoned their day-to-day responsibilities in order to ride the subway alongside the Maple Leafs or watch them skate beside city hall.
“I’ve been around the league for a long time so I know how strong the Leafs fans are, but going to the visiting arenas and seeing all the fans, that’s something I’ve never experienced, said Spezza. “So that’s pretty cool to see the support we get all around the league and really it motivates you to want to do well because it shows that something can be pretty special if we can continue to win.”
After a tumultuous start that saw him scratched by former coach Mike Babcock for the home opener, Spezza has carved out a niche for himself here. He gives Sheldon Keefe a reliable right-handed faceoff option — basically the only one on the roster. And he’s been surprisingly productive in a depth role, producing 2.31 points per hour to rank third among regular skaters behind Auston Matthews (2.59) and Ilya Mikheyev (2.44).
Toronto Maple Leafs defenceman Martin Marincin, left, Maple Leafs centre John Tavares, back centre, and Maple Leafs defenceman Cody Ceci, right, watch the puck fly over the net during an outdoor three-on-three game at Nathan Phillips Square in Toronto on Thursday, January 9, 2020. (Nathan Denette/CP)
During Wednesday’s 4-3 loss to the Winnipeg Jets, Spezza was even successful on his shootout attempt — making him 2-for-2 in the skills tiebreaker this season.
Not bad for the NHL’s fifth-oldest forward and one of his team’s lowest-paid players.
Especially when you factor in that Keefe believes Spezza’s most significant contributions come in ways that can’t be quantified by statistics. Stuff like the presence that comes with having nearly 1,100 NHL games on the resume, or the institutional knowledge gathered while spending nearly half of your 36 years in pro hockey.
“The experience to me is the biggest one,” Keefe said. “Experience in the league, experience in various situations, experience in relationships with the officials. Just an older guy.”
Kasperi Kapanen, one of Spezza’s wingers, calls him the “brains” of a line with Pierre Engvall.
Spezza has been around the NHL long enough that he played against Kasperi’s father, Sami. And he still possesses the ability to create room for his speedier wingers by drawing defenders towards him in the middle of the ice before distributing the puck.
“It’s a huge honour to play with a guy like him,” said Kapanen.
The honour flows both ways.
Spezza remembers taping his father Rino’s old brown leather goalie pads as a kid to look like those of Felix Potvin. He recalls the excitement that came with Doug Gilmour’s arrival in Toronto and the team’s back-to-back runs to the conference final in 1993 and 1994.
He understands the connection between the team and the city after growing up in Mississauga, and at least has some idea about the unique chance the current-day Leafs possess with a strong roster that has reversed course after a choppy start.
“[He’s] just a great example, I think, around the locker-room,” said Leafs captain John Tavares. “For a guy that’s been highly touted for a long time, has had a great career, was a go-to guy for how long and really came in accepting a lesser role and understanding the opportunity here.
“For a lot of us … he really sets that example that these opportunities don’t come very often and he really believes in this group.”
He’s the kind of guy who finds an easy smile even when they take practice outdoors on a chilly January day.
When the sands of time are slipping through your fingers, and you’re still living out your childhood dream, there is no such thing as inconvenience.
All Spezza sees is a chance to make more lasting memories.
Montreal Alouettes wide receiver Tyson Philpot has announced he will be out for the rest of the CFL season.
The Delta, B.C., native posted the news on his Instagram page Thursday.
“To Be Continued. Shoutout my team, the fans of the CFL and the whole city of Montreal! I can’t wait to be back healthy and write this next chapter in 2025,” the statement read.
Philpot, 24, injured his foot in a 33-23 win over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats on Aug. 10 and was placed on the six-game injured list the next week.
The six-foot-one, 195-pound receiver had 58 receptions, 779 yards and five touchdowns in nine games for the league-leading Alouettes in his third season.
Philpot scored the game-winning touchdown in Montreal’s Grey Cup win last season to punctuate a six-reception, 63-yard performance.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
NAPA, Calif. (AP) — David Lipsky shot a 7-under 65 on Thursday at Silverado Country Club to take a one-stroke lead after the first round of the Procore Championship.
Winless in 104 events since joining the PGA Tour in 2022, Lipsky went out with the early groups and had eight birdies with one bogey to kick off the FedEx Cup Fall series at the picturesque course in the heart of Napa Valley wine country.
After missing the cut in his three previous tournaments, Lipsky flew from Las Vegas to Arizona to reunite with his college coach at Northwestern to get his focus back. He also spent time playing with some of the Northwestern players, which helped him relax.
“Just being around those guys and seeing how carefree they are, not knowing what’s coming for them yet, it’s sort of nice to see that,” Lipsky said. “I was almost energized by their youthfulness.”
Patton Kizzire and Mark Hubbard were a stroke back. Kizzire started on the back nine and made a late run with three consecutive birdies to move into a tie for first. A bogey on No. 8 dropped him back.
“There was a lot of good stuff out there today,” Kizzire said. “I stayed patient and just went through my routines and played well, one shot at a time. I’ve really bee working hard on my mental game and I think that allowed me to rinse and repeat and reset and keep playing.”
Mark Hubbard was at 67. He had nine birdies but fell off the pace with a bogey and triple bogey on back-to-back holes.
Kevin Dougherty also was in the group at 67. He had two eagles and ended his afternoon by holing out from 41 yards on the 383-yard, par-4 18th.
Defending champion Sahith Theegala had to scramble for much of his round of 69.
Wyndham Clark, who won the U.S. Open in 2023 and the AT&T at Pebble Beach in February, had a 70.
Max Homa shot 71. The two-time tournament champion and a captain’s pick for the President’s Cup in two weeks had two birdies and overcame a bogey on the par-4 first.
Stewart Cink, the 2020 winner, also opened with a 71. He won The Ally Challenge last month for his first PGA Tour Champions title.
Three players from the Presidents Cup International team had mix results. Min Woo Lee shot 68, Mackenzie Hughes of Dundas, Ont., 69 and Corey Conners of Listowel, Ont., 73. International team captain Mike Weir of Brights Grove, Ont., also had a 69.
Ben Silverman of Thornhill, Ont., had a 68, Nick Taylor of Abbotsford, B.C., and Roger Sloan of Merritt, B.C., shot 70 and Adam Svensson of Surrey, B.C., had a 71.
Lipsky was a little shaky off the tee for much of the afternoon but made up for it with steady iron play that left him in great shape on the greens. He had one-putts on 11 holes and was in position for a bigger day but left five putts short.
Lipsky’s only real problem came on the par-4 ninth when his approach sailed into a bunker just shy of the green. He bounced back nicely with five birdies on his back nine. After missing a 19-foot putt for birdie on No. 17, Lipsky ended his day with a 12-foot par putt.
That was a big change from last year when Lipsky tied for 30th at Silverado when he drove the ball well but had uneven success on the greens.
“Sometimes you have to realize golf can be fun, and I think I sort of forgot that along the way as I’m grinding it out,” Lipsky said. “You’ve got to put things in perspective, take a step back. Sort of did that and it seems like it’s working out.”
Laird stayed close after beginning his day with a bogey on the par-4 10th. The Scot got out of the sand nicely but pushed his par putt past the hole.
Homa continued to have issues off the tee and missed birdie putts on his final four holes.
GUADALAJARA, Mexico – Canada’s Marina Stakusic is moving on to the quarterfinals of the Guadalajara Open.
The Mississauga, Ont., native defeated the tournament top seed, Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia, 6-3, 5-7, 7-6 (0) in the round of 16 on Thursday.
Stakusic faced a 0-4 deficit in the third and final set before marching back into the match.
The 19-year-old won five of the next six games to even it up before exchanging games to force a tiebreaker, where Stakusic took complete control to win the match.
Stakusic had five aces with 17 double faults in the three-hour, four-minute match.
However, she converted eight of her 18 break-point opportunities.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
