Alex Galchenyuk scored his first NHL goal with the Toronto Maple Leafs in a 4-2 win over the Calgary Flames. Morgan Rielly, John Tavares, and Auston Matthews all scored in the win, with Michael Hutchinson stopping 31 of 33 for his fourth win of the season (4-2-1). William Nylander created goals that got the Leafs tied and ahead at crucial moments, but was only credited for one. Tavares and Matthews led the way with two points; a goal and an assist each.
The Leafs didn’t have a great middle portion of their game, but a strong start and convincing third period added up to the win. It should also be noted that the Leafs failed to score on their lone power play in the game, extending the drought to 10 games (0/28).
1-0
Now in the top-10 in games played for Leafs defensemen, Rielly opened the scoring less than a minute in with a wicked shot. Rielly skated into open space created by the Flames getting caught overloading one side of the ice and losing the puck battle quickly. Marner was on one side with Hyman crashing the net on the other as Rielly stepped into a shot that beat Dave Rittich high blocker.
The Leafs were in solid control of the play in the first half of the first period. They won battles in their own zone and kept the Flames from having any cycles, while offensively they did a really good job of getting right in on Rittich with their shots. Galchenyuk had a nice solo chance off the rush, but he took a shot from distance while a Calgary defenseman was bearing down on him that was stopped.
Hutchinson was strong to start, beating Mikael Backlund on a breakaway with a nice pad save. It was a good first chance to settle him into the game and he looked comfortable on the lone other shot he got early in the game.
The fourth line for the Leafs was good, hemming the Flames in their own zone on one shift in particular. I think Mikheyev struggled to manage the puck in the offensive zone, both in handling but also in tactics. I think he’s being asked to do too much on that line sometimes. Thornton would be fun there if he’s going to be in the bottom six.
1-1
Joakim Nordstrom tied the game later in the period, tipping a point shot from Mark Giordano past Hutchinson right off a faceoff. Both Kerfoot and Spezza just drifted away from Nordstrom when the shot came through, leaving him all alone to tip it. I thought those motions were weird.
1-2
Oof. A turnover from the defense as Dermott and Bogosian both got beat to the corner cleanly and a pretty bad goal against from Hutchinson, and the Leafs entered the break down after starting so well. The shot was a floater, which makes it pretty rough.
After One
5v5 stats:
Shot attempts: 14-22 (39%)
Shots on goal: 12-11
Scoring chances: 8-9
Expected goals: 0.84-0.80 (51%)
Thoughts:
I thought the Leafs were good in the first half of the period, it seemed the Flames had no control of the puck. But in the second, they threw it all away and got completely overwhelmed. You can see in the gameflow the Leafs had put together some good shifts in a row, but immediately following the Nordstrom goal, they were on their heels until the Mangiapane goal and the buzzer for the period rang.
Spezza had the best chance in the period for the Leafs in xG but overall the Leafs offense wasn’t actually getting the chances the zone time should’ve allowed them. It definitely looked like the Flames weathered an early push and then counterattacked once they realized they were in the game.
Second Period
Hyman got tripped with the puck, the Flames guy didn’t lose his position as he fell over Hyman, but it was the Leafs who got the penalty. I don’t get that. Thankfully, the Leafs killed the penalty. At least they know how to do that.
The Leafs then got a power play when Brodie got tripped. On the same play, Matthew Tkachuk fell into an open penalty box door and had to go to the locker room. Matthews had a chance on the power play but his stick blew up on him. The power play was totally flat. Neither unit looks in sync. The fourth line got the closest thing to a shot as they started a shift with a few seconds left in the two minutes.
2-2
Alex Galchenyuk scores his first as a Leaf! Nylander made a great play to get into the zone, he found Tavares with his stick open at the side of the net. Tavares made an elite play to Galch for an awkward chance that he buried.
All the Galch Gifs!
After Two
5v5 stats:
Shot attempts: 12-17 (41%)
Shots on goal: 6-9
Scoring chances: 5-7
Expected goals: 0.41-0.51 (44%)
Thoughts:
At one point, the shots were 11-3 in the first period. They ended the second down 18-24.
Hutchinson definitely had to work in this period because the Flames were really strong all throughout. Credit to him, he stopped everything that came his way and allowed the Leafs to tie it up at the end of the period.
I don’t expect Keefe or Malhotra to listen to me on this, but I have a few suggestions for the power play:
Nylander on the first unit and stick in him front of the net, end the madness.
Dermott on the second unit, he might as well do something as an offensive guy on the third pair.
Try some high-low plays to force the defense out wide a little bit. That’ll create lanes and openings for players like Marner, Matthews, and Nylander to find. I get what the East-West passing is trying to do, but I think teams have caught onto it, time to change it up.
Third Period
3-2
Nylander, once again, picked up an outlet pass from Tavares, got a great chance on Rittich. The puck rebounded to Tavares, who’s shot from the same area bounced off Noah Hanifin and into the back of the net. This second line has fully deserved to score some goals in this game. Nylander wasn’t given his second assist on the goal since technically Hanifin touched it, but Tavares his second primary point. Don’t tell me Tavares is slowing down, he’s still worth every penny. Plus, they’ve had so much fun with Galch, I really like this line.
4-2
Not to be out-done, Matthews and Marner connected for a goal seconds after Tavares put the team ahead.
Engvall had a nice rush up the ice that nearly opened Spezza up for a chance. I really liked this from them.
The Flames pulled their goalie with four minutes left while down two goals. Hutchinson was good in the final stretch of the game, stopping several chances in the last five minutes that could’ve been trouble. Nylander nearly got an empty netter, but he hit the side of the net. Hyman missed another empty net. And Tavares missed a third!
After Three
Full game 5v5 stats:
Shot attempts: 43-50 (47%)
Shots on goal: 30-28
Scoring chances: 25-22
Expected goals: 2.20-1.96 (57%)
Thoughts:
There were some red flags in this game as Matthews and Marner didn’t have their best nights — but hey, they scored. The bottom half of the defense didn’t inspire me much confidence. Holl was his normal awkward self, and was fairly effective nonetheless. Dermott and Bogosian looked overwhelmed several times and they finished the game with the worst shot and expected goals share.
I think it’s quite interesting that the Tavares line played only two fewer shifts than the Matthews line in this game, but their time on ice were somewhere around four minutes less. The Kerfoot-Thornton-Spezza line had the longest shift lengths on the team and they were also benched for the end of the period. Spezza and Thornton the only ones under 10 minutes. I wouldn’t worry too much about the Tavares line’s minutes, they got the deployment they (and we) wanted.
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) — The Miami Dolphins will bring in another quarterback while starter Tua Tagovailoa deals with his latest concussion, coach Mike McDaniel said Friday.
For now, Skylar Thompson will be considered the Dolphins’ starter while Tagovailoa is sidelined. Tagovailoa left Thursday night’s 31-10 loss to Buffalo in the third quarter with the third known concussion of his NFL career, all of them coming in the last 24 months.
“The team and the organization are very confident in Skylar,” McDaniel said.
McDaniel said the team has not made any decision about whether to place Tagovailoa on injured reserve. Tagovailoa was expected at the team facility on Friday to start the process of being evaluated in earnest.
“We just have to operate in the unknown and be prepared for every situation,” McDaniel said, noting that the only opinions that will matter to the team will be the ones from Tagovailoa and the medical staff.
McDaniel added that he doesn’t see Tagovailoa playing in Miami’s next game at Seattle on Sept. 22.
“I have no idea and I’m not going to all of a sudden start making decisions that I don’t even see myself involved in the most important parts of,” McDaniel added. “All I’m telling Tua is everyone is counting on you to be a dad and be a dad this weekend. And then we’ll move from there. There won’t be any talk about where we’re going in that regard … none of that will happen without doctors’ expertise and the actual player.”
Tagovailoa was 17 for 25 passing for 145 yards, with one touchdown and three interceptions — one of which was returned for a Buffalo score — when he got hurt. Thompson completed eight of 14 passes for 80 yards.
Thompson said he feels “fully equipped” to run the Dolphins’ offense.
“What’s going to lie ahead, who knows, but man, I’m confident, though,” Thompson said after Thursday’s game. “I feel like I’m ready for whatever’s to come. I’m going to prepare and work hard and do everything I can to lead this team and do my job.”
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.
