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Berrios struggles early as Blue Jays fall to White Sox – TSN

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TORONTO — A poor start by Jose Berrios put the Toronto Blue Jays in an early hole Tuesday night. A lack of clutch hitting later in the game proved just as costly.

Jose Abreu homered in Chicago’s four-run first inning and the White Sox held off two late-inning threats in a 5-2 win over the Blue Jays at Rogers Centre.

“When you’re struggling to score runs, it is tough,” Toronto manager Charlie Montoyo said of trying to overcome an early deficit. “But one thing about this team is they don’t quit. They’re facing good pitching and we were in the game until the end.”

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The Blue Jays gave up a season-high 18 hits but still sent the potential tying run to the plate in the eighth and ninth innings. Reliever Liam Hendriks got out of both jams to help end Chicago’s three-game losing skid and send Toronto (65-59) to its eighth loss in 11 games.

Luis Robert scored twice for the White Sox (73-54), who got a strong start from Dylan Cease (10-6). He gave up a solo shot to Corey Dickerson, one of just four hits allowed over his seven innings.

Berrios (8-7) struggled from the outset in his shortest start in over three years. Robert and Yoan Moncada singled before Abreu belted an 0-1 offering – just the fifth pitch of the game from Berrios — for his 26th homer of the year.

Danny Mendick added an RBI double before Berrios fanned No. 9 hitter Zack Collins to end his 33-pitch frame. Berrios lasted just two more innings before being replaced by Trent Thornton.

“I felt strong and healthy, I just didn’t execute well in that first inning,” Berrios said.

Abreu drove in another run on a groundout after the White Sox put runners on the corners in the fourth. Cease, meanwhile, retired the first 11 batters before Vladimir Guerrero Jr., singled in the bottom half of the frame.

Toronto’s first extra-base hit came in the fifth on an Alejandro Kirk double. He moved to third on a Lourdes Gurriel Jr., single but both runners were stranded when Santiago Espinal popped up.

Abreu picked up his third hit of the game an inning later but Gurriel’s strong throw from left field prevented the Chicago slugger from stretching it to a double.

Josh Palacios and Teoscar Hernandez also had an assist apiece. It was the second time in club history that all three Toronto outfielders had assists in the same game.

Dickerson turned on a 97-m.p.h. fastball in the seventh inning for his fifth home run of the season.

In the eighth, the Blue Jays threatened after one-out singles by Espinal and Bo Bichette. Hendriks replaced Michael Kopech and walked Marcus Semien to load the bases for Guerrero, who worked a full count before grounding into an inning-ending double play.

Gurriel drove in Hernandez to make it a three-run game in the ninth. With two runners on, Hendriks struck out Palacios and got Espinal to ground out to end it.

Cease fanned seven and issued one walk over his tidy 95-pitch outing. Berrios, acquired at the trade deadline from the Minnesota Twins, allowed four earned runs and nine hits while striking out six.

Toronto entered play 4 1/2 games behind the Boston Red Sox in the race for the second American League wild-card spot. The Blue Jays started the day with a 13.1-per cent chance of making the playoffs, according to FanGraphs.

The White Sox started the day with a nine-game lead on the second-place Cleveland Indians in the AL Central. Announced attendance was 14,553 and the game took three hours 12 minutes to play.

Notes: Toronto pitching coach Pete Walker was ejected by home plate umpire Mark Carlson after a mound visit in the first inning. … The White Sox reinstated utilityman Leury García from the 10-day injured list before the game and optioned right-hander Ryan Burr to triple-A Charlotte. … Outfielders Joe Carter, Devon White and Shawn Green recorded an assist apiece for Toronto against the California Angels on July 5, 1995. … The Blue Jays will send left-hander Robbie Ray (9-5, 2.79 ERA) to the mound Wednesday night against right-hander Lucas Giolito (9-9, 3.77).

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 24, 2021.

Follow @GregoryStrongCP on Twitter.

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Allen on trade to Devils from Habs: 'Sometimes you've got to be a little bit selfish' – Yahoo Canada Sports

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Jake Allen loved being a member of the Montreal Canadiens.

The hockey-mad market, the crackling Bell Centre on a Saturday night, the Original Six franchise’s iconic logo.

The 33-year-old goaltender is also realistic.

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With the Canadiens still in full rebuild mode — and two young netminders in Sam Montembeault and Cayden Primeau ready for more playing time — Allen could see the writing on the wall.

Desperate for help in their own crease, the New Jersey Devils asked Montreal about the veteran’s availability. But the team, general manager Tom Fitzgerald told reporters earlier this month, was initially on Allen’s no-trade list.

There wasn’t anything the Fredericton product disliked about the organization or city. The Devils simply appeared to have their crease set for years to come.

But when the club that finished with 112 points and made the second round of the playoffs in 2022-23 was badly hampered by poor play from Vitek Vanecek, Nico Daws and Akira Schmid — each netminder owned save percentages below .900 — the Devils circled back.

And Allen had changed his tune.

“Loved my time as a Hab,” he said of pulling on Montreal’s red, white and blue threads. “I always will cherish that. Put on probably the most special jersey in hockey, in my books. But you realize in your career, it doesn’t last forever.

“You’ve got to make decisions sometimes.”

Allen, who is signed through next season, eventually agreed to a deal that sent him to New Jersey ahead of the NHL’s March 8 trade deadline for a conditional third-round pick at the 2025 draft.

Apart from playing meaningful hockey on a team trying to claw its way back into the Eastern Conference playoff race, the swap gave him more runway to get his family settled in a new city instead of waiting to see what this summer’s crowded goalie market might bring.

“Sometimes you’ve got to be a little bit selfish,” said Allen, a Stanley Cup champion with the St. Louis Blues in 2019. “Look yourself in the mirror and wonder what’s best for you and your family.”

He’s been really good for his new team.

Allen was lights out in Tuesday’s first period against the Toronto Maple Leafs, making an eye-popping 25 saves in what would turn into New Jersey’s 6-3 victory.

So far he’s 4-2-0 with a .925 save percentage and a 2.51 goals against average in six starts for the Devils, who sit five points back of the East’s second wild-card spot.

“A real pro,” said interim head coach Travis Green.

Allen is a combined 10-14-3 in 2023-24 with a .900 save percentage and a 3.39 GAA. Across his 11 seasons with St. Louis, Montreal and now New Jersey, he’s 193-164-41 with a .908 save percentage and 2.75 GAA.

“Makes the saves we need to get some momentum back,” Devils captain Nico Hischier said. “If you have a solid goalie in the net, that makes your work easier.”

Allen is also 11-12 with a .924 and a 2.06 GAA all-time in the playoffs — a good sign for his new club should New Jersey manage to make the cut.

For now, though, he’s just enjoying being back in a post-season race.

“I thought this was a good opportunity to come in the rest of this year, play some games,” Allen said.

“It’s been a good start.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 28, 2024.

___

Follow @JClipperton_CP on X.

Joshua Clipperton, The Canadian Press

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Matthews game-time decision for Maple Leafs against Capitals with illness – NHL.com

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TORONTOAuston Matthews will be a game-time decision for the Toronto Maple Leafs against the Washington Capitals at Scotiabank Arena on Thursday (7 p.m. ET; SN1, MNMT) because of an illness.

“It’s going to be on how he feels throughout the day,” Maple Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe said.

The forward did not participate in Toronto’s morning skate. Max Domi took his place as the center on a line between Tyler Bertuzzi and Mitch Marner, a right wing recovering from a high-ankle sprain sustained March 7 and will be out the next two games.

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Matthews leads the NHL with 59 goals, one from becoming the ninth player in NHL history with at least two 60-goal seasons. He scored 60 in 73 games in 2021-22, when he won the Rocket Richard Trophy, Hart Trophy and Ted Lindsay Award. He had one goal and nine shots in 23:44 of a 6-3 loss to the New Jersey Devils on Tuesday, which extended his point streak to five games (four goals, seven assists).

He missed one game this season with illness, a 7-0 win against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Dec. 16.

“Of course, it’s an adjustment when your best player is out of the lineup,” Domi said, “when anybody is out of the lineup, but I think we’ve done a great job all year of guys stepping up when they have to, and we just have to continue to do that.”

Toronto defenseman Morgan Rielly will miss his second straight game with an upper-body injury.

“He just remains day to day,” Keefe said. “We’re hopeful he’s going to bounce back here. The one thing that is good is once he gets through this day or two here, it’s not going to be a lingering situation. It’s not going to be an injury that’s ongoing. Once he’s past it, he’s past it so we just need to give him some time.”

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Canucks place goalie Thatcher Demko on long-term injured list

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The Vancouver Canucks have placed all-star goalie Thatcher Demko on the long-term injured reserve list retroactively.

“It’s just cap related,” coach Rick Tocchet said after practice Wednesday. “We get some cap relief, that’s all it is.”

The 28-year-old netminder has been considered week to week since being sidelined with a lower-body injury midway through Vancouver’s 5-0 win over the Winnipeg Jets on March 9.

That injury designation hasn’t changed, Tocchet said.

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Demko boasts a 34-18-2 record this season, with a .917 save percentage, a 2.47 goals-against average and five shutouts.

Casey DeSmith has taken over the starting job for Vancouver, going 3-2-1 since Demko’s injury. He has a .899 save percentage on the season with a 2.73 goals-against average and one shutout.

The earliest Demko could be back in the Canucks’ lineup is April 6 against the Kings in Los Angeles.

He’s expected to be a key piece as Vancouver (45-19-8) prepares for its first playoff appearance since the COVID-shortened 2019-20 campaign.

Canucks general manager Patrik Allvin also announced Wednesday that the club has called up forward Arshdeep Bains from the Abbotsford Canucks of the American Hockey League.

“I’d like to see where [Bains is] at,” Tocchet said, noting he isn’t sure whether the 23-year-old winger will slot into the lineup when the Canucks host the Dallas Stars on Thursday.

WATCH | Bains makes NHL debut

 

Surrey, B.C.’s Arshdeep Bains makes Canucks debut

1 month ago

Duration 2:20

Arshdeep Bains from Surrey, B.C., has made his NHL debut with the Vancouver Canucks Tuesday night against the Colorado Avalanche. As CBC’s Joel Ballard reports, it’s been a hard-fought journey for the hometown kid to the big leagues.

Bains played five games for the NHL team in February before being sent back to Abbotsford.

“He went down, he’s done a couple of things that we like, and he’s got some speed,” Tocchet said.

Vancouver may get another forward back in the lineup Thursday.

Dakota Joshua practised in a full-contact jersey on Wednesday for the first time since suffering an upper-body injury in Vancouver’s 4-2 win over the Blackhawks in Chicago on Feb. 13.

The physical winger, who’s set to become an unrestricted free agent this summer, has a career-high 26 points (13 goals, 13 assists) this season.

Sitting out injured “hasn’t been fun,” Joshua said.

“It feels like forever,” he said. “But at this point, that’s behind me and I’m moving forward.”

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