As NHL training camps continue, keep updated on all the injury news and roster updates from around the with daily Ice Chips.
Toronto Maple Leafs
Head coach Sheldon Keefe said Thursday Auston Matthews and Jason Spezza will start taking reps on the penalty to get a feel for the role for use on a part-time basis.
Keefe said Zach Hyman, Mitch Marner, Ilya Mikheyev and Alex Kerfoot will serve as the team’s main penalty killing forwards this season.
Sheldon Keefe said Auston Matthews and Jason Spezza will start taking reps on the penalty kill, just to get a feel for it. Not a full-time role but on a part-time basis as needed they want Matthews to be comfortable there.
“In Auston’s case in particular, it’s something he hasn’t done. We don’t expect it to be any sort of full-time role or responsibility but on a part-time basis as needed. We want to start getting him comfortable with those situations and face-offs in particular is an area where he can bring a lot to us on the left side,” Keefe said. “We’ve seen so much in his growth as a defensive player that we believe he can bring a lot to the penalty kill, and obviously the offensive threat that he is on the ice, in addition to some of our other penalty killers, brings a lot too so we’re going to start to get him some minutes in that regard this season.”
Matthews was 55% in the dot last season, while the Leafs ranked 24th in PK faceoffs.
Ottawa Senators
Centre Chris Tierney who has been dealing with an injury and not skating is listed with Group B today, signaling his return to the ice.
Tierney, 26, had 11 goals and 37 points in 71 games last season with the Senators.
The Senators used the following lines in their first skate of the day:
Tkachuk – L.Brown – Dadonov Chalpik – White – Batherson Galchekyuk – Anisimov – Watson Paul – Norris – C.Brown Kelly – Paquette – Balcers
TSN Hockey Insider Pierre LeBrun noted Thursday that the Canadiens will be exempt from the curfew being imposed in Quebec, but will have to go straight home after games as part of their protocol.
Because everyone in the Habs bubble is tested every day and follows a very strict protocol, they’re ok to play night games at home at this point, but they have to go straight home after games as part of said protocol. https://t.co/GZVhNIsXIq
TORONTO – Reigning PWHL MVP and scoring champ Natalie Spooner will miss the start of the regular season for the Toronto Sceptres, general manager Gina Kingsbury announced Tuesday on the first day of training camp.
The 33-year-old Spooner had knee surgery on her left anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) after she was checked into the boards by Minnesota’s Grace Zumwinkle in Game 3 of their best-of-five semifinal series on May 13.
She had a goal and an assist in three playoff games but did not finish the series. Toronto was up 2-1 in the semifinal at that time and eventually fell 3-2 in the series.
Spooner led the PWHL with 27 points in 24 games. Her 20 goals, including five game-winners, were nine more than the closest skater.
Kingsbury said there is no timeline, as the team wants the Toronto native at 100 per cent, but added that “she is doing really well” in her recovery.
The Sceptres open the PWHL season on Nov. 30 when they host the Boston Fleet.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 12, 2024.
LAHORE, Pakistan (AP) — A top official of the Pakistan Cricket Board declined Friday to confirm media reports that India has decided against playing any games in host Pakistan during next year’s Champions Trophy.
“My view is if there’s any problems, they (India) should tell us in writing,” PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi told reporters in Lahore. “I’ll share that with the media as well as with the government as soon as I get such a letter.”
Indian media reported Friday that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has communicated its concerns to all the Champions Trophy stakeholders, including the PCB, over the Feb. 19-March 9 tournament and would not play in arch-rival Pakistan.
The Times of India said that “Dubai is a strong candidate to host the fixtures involving the Men in Blue” for the 50-over tournament.
Such a solution would see Pakistan having to travel to a neutral venue to play India in a group match, with another potential meeting later in the tournament if both teams advanced from their group. The final is scheduled for March 9 in Pakistan with the specific venue not yet decided.
“Our stance is clear,” Naqvi said. “They need to give us in writing any objections they may have. Until now, no discussion of the hybrid model has happened, nor are we prepared to accept one.”
Political tensions have stopped bilateral cricket between the two nations since 2008 and they have competed in only multi-nation tournaments, including ICC World Cups.
“Cricket should be free of politics,” Naqvi said. “Any sport should not be entangled with politics. Our preparations for the Champions Trophy will continue unabated, and this will be a successful event.”
The PCB has already spent millions of dollars on the upgrade of stadiums in Karachi, Lahore and Rawalpindi which are due to host 15 Champions Trophy games. Naqvi hoped all the three stadiums will be ready over the next two months.
“Almost every country wants the Champions Trophy to be played here (in Pakistan),” Naqvi said. “I don’t think anyone should make this a political matter, and I don’t expect they will. I expect the tournament will be held at the home of the official hosts.”
Eight countries – Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, England, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand and Afghanistan – are due to compete in the tournament, the schedule of which is yet to be announced by the International Cricket Council.
“Normally the ICC announces the schedule of any major tournament 100 days before the event, and I hope they will announce it very soon,” Naqvi said.
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – Ottawa‘s Gabriela Dabrowski and Erin Routliffe of New Zealand are through to the doubles final at the WTA Finals after a 7-6 (7), 6-1 victory over Nicole Melichar-Martinez of the United States and Australia’s Ellen Perez in semifinal action Friday.
Dabrowski and Routliffe won a hard-fought first set against serve when Routliffe’s quick reaction at the net to defend a Perez shot gave the duo set point, causing Perez to throw down her racket in frustration.
The second seeds then cruised through the second set, winning match point on serve when Melichar-Martinez couldn’t handle Routliffe’s shot.
The showdown was a rematch of last year’s semifinal, which Melichar-Martinez and Perez won in a super tiebreak.
Dabrowski and Routliffe will face the winner of a match between Katerina Siniakova and Taylor Townsend, and Hao-Ching Chan and Veronika Kudermetova in the final on Saturday.
Dabrowski is aiming to become the first Canadian to win a WTA Finals title.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.
