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Canada's Alex Newhook "probably 50-50" to play vs. Czech Republic in World Junior quarters – TSN

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4 years ago

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William Nylander


Team Canada practiced inside the Edmonton bubble on Friday.

Team Canada centre Alex Newhook missed practice and is “probably 50-50” to play in Saturday’s quarterfinal against the Czech Republic, per head coach Andre Tourigny.

“If it was [Friday] he would not play, but we’ll see [Saturday],” Tourigny said.

The Boston College product left Thursday’s game against Finland late in the first period after a shoulder-to-shoulder check by Eemil Viro.

Connor Zary, who started the game as the 13th forward, moved up to take Newhook’s spot alongside Cole Perfetti and Peyton Krebs and the Calgary Flames first rounder remained on that line at Friday’s practice.

“Z has been really good,” Tourigny said. “He had been put in a tough situation. When you’re not playing a regular shift it’s tough to stay in the game and every time I put him out there he did a really good job [Thursday] and the game before so he earned it.”

It’s been an emotional couple of days for Zary who signed an entry-level contract with the Flames only hours before puck drop on Thursday. That piece of unfinished business had been on his mind during the World Juniors.

“Honestly, that gives you a little bit of a second wind,” the Kamloops Blazers centre said, “a little bit of adrenaline knowing that’s over with and that can be out of your head.”

Canada’s Newhook a game-time decision, Zary ready to fill in if needed

Alex Newhook did not practice with Team Canada after colliding with Finnish defenceman Eemil Viro on Thursday. Head coach Andre Tourigny says Newhook is a game-time decision for their quarter-final against the Czech Republic. Connor Zary filled in for Newhook at practice and is ready for his number to be called if needed.

—

Zary, who picked up an assist in the 4-1 win over Finland, credits Blazers co-owner Shane Doan for helping him be ready for this promotion.

“I was on the phone with Shane Doan the other night and he said he’s been through this a lot of times and on different occasions with Team Canada. He said, ‘No matter what you do, you got to keep telling yourself you’re going to be ready. You got to write things down and remember those things and those little things are the things you’re going to do when the opportunity arises. That is something I took to heart … and when that chance did happen I was ready for it.”

Zary’s teammate and close friend Daylan Kuefler lived with Doan for a year, which is how he got to know the retired NHLer, who represented Canada at the 2004 World Cup, 2006 Olympics and several World Championships.

—

One day after watching his team throttle the Finns, Tourigny identified at least one area that can be improved.

“The big thing is the box out in our zone,” the coach observed. “We were not hard in our box outs so in the third period they had a few deflections and rebound situations. They [did] not get the right bounce, but it could’ve been dangerous.”

Tourigny warned against complacency as Canada prepares to play the Czech Republic, who finished fourth in Group B and got blown out by the Swedes (7-1) and Americans (7-0).

“People don’t give enough credit to the Czechs,” Tourigny insisted. “They’re a really good five-on-five team so we need to make sure we are humble and go into that game knowing it will be a tough match.”

The coach pointed out that most of the Czech line-up has a positive plus-minus rating despite some of the lopsided scores. And the Czechs already pulled off one big upset in this tournament by shutting out Russia 2-0.

“The Czechs did us a favour by beating the Russians,” Tourigny said. “They showed us how good they can be. There’s no way we’ll take them lightly.”

Although Canada has looked really good so far in outscoring opponents 33-4 in the preliminary round, the pressure of an elimination situation is going to be a new sensation for this group.

“You play Finland and you want to win, but it’s not do or die,” Tourigny said. “Now, we need to get down to business and make sure we’re focused on the task, urgent with the task and patient with the outcome and not focusing on stuff we cannot control.”

—

If Canada gets its forecheck game going against the Czechs on Saturday then they should be in great shape. All four of Canada’s lines were coming in waves at the Finns.

“They’re getting in really quick,” observed defenceman Thomas Harley. “They’re not giving them a chance to set up or turn around and even look. They are forcing rims and finishing their hits, which makes it a whole lot easier in the third period because those D don’t want to go back and get pucks any more.”

“We came out and played our best game so far,” said Canada’s leading scorer Dylan Cozens. “Reloading on pucks is our biggest thing. They’d move it up the wall and we’d have our high guy reload and create turnovers and then we’d go back at them and get good changes in the offensive zone and get fresh legs out and just keep dominating them by cycling the puck.”

Tourigny described Team Canada’s forecheck as “beautiful” and praised his players for keeping their shifts short so they could maintain the pressure most of the night.

“When you have that depth you have to exploit that depth,” Tourigny said. “You have to play with a pace where you push the game.”

The coach noted that when you’re playing at that level it can only be sustained for 30-40 seconds and not 40-50 seconds.

“The energy was phenomenal,” Tourigny noted.

Team Canada riding wave of momentum into quarter-final showdown with Czechs

After outscoring the opposition 33-4 in the preliminary round, Team Canada is riding a wave of momentum into the knockout stage at the World Juniors. The stacked lineup featuring 19 first-round picks is living up to the sky-high expectations even without injured captain Kirby Dach, and as Mark Masters reports, the only team that may be able to beat them is themselves.

—

Jan Mysak lets out a laugh when asked what he thinks about Team Canada.

“They’re pretty good,” the Czech captain said. “It’s going to be a tough game. I know that. Every player on that team is really good. We have to be a very tough team. We want to beat them. We’ll see. Nothing is impossible.”

Mysak, a forward who played for Hamilton in the Ontario Hockey League last season, said the Czechs will look to replicate their performance against Russia.

“We played as a team,” he noted. “We played hard. We played together. We blocked a lot of shots and our goalie [Lukas Parik] had a good game so that’s going to be key points.”

Mysak scored two goals and added an assist in the four preliminary round games. What’s it look like when he’s at his best?

“I lead the team,” he said.

With the OHL still on pause, Mysak is playing in the top Czech league for his hometown team Litvinov and has received advice on how to be a good leader from general manager and coach Jiri Slegr.

The Canadiens second round pick in October’s draft has also been texting with Tomas Plekanec throughout the tournament. The best advice from the long-time Hab?

“When I asked him how he made the NHL, he told me he did everything they told him.”

Czech captain Mysak knows the dangers Canada presents, says his team is excited for quarters

Czech Republic captain Jan Mysak admits it will be tough to play against a team like Canada and knows that his team will have to play tough and as a unit to pull off the upset. The Canadiens 2020 draft pick said the mood in the Czech camp is good and they are excited for the challenge in the quarter-finals.

—

If you attend a Team Canada practice, you’re going to notice Jakob Pelletier. The Val d’Or Foreurs winger is, of course, a talented player, but he is also a loud one. Pelletier will often be heard yelling out something after nice plays or even just at the start of a drill. It sounds like, “Yi! Yi! Yi!”

“I’m kind of like the guy who wakes up in the morning and is on,” Pelletier explained. “I kind of love to scream and to talk and, not disturb people, but to be a morning sunshine.”

Pelletier said the yell is something he thought up during the selection camp in Red Deer, Alta.

“He’s an amazing guy,” said Krebs. “He brings a lot of energy to the group. I think every time I talk to the guy I laugh a little bit just because he’s got good jokes. He’s a beauty and he’s a big part of our team and a lot of guys look up to him.”

Pelletier is an emotional guy on the ice and after banking a puck in off Dylan Holloway on Thursday night he kissed the Oilers first rounder on the helmet while on the bench.

“I’m a touch-able guy,” Pelletier said with a laugh. “I like to hug people and be close to them and it was kind of in the moment. A lot of joy.”

—

Bowen Byram has incredible offensive instincts and the ability to make jaw-dropping plays. And while the Vancouver Giants defenceman does have three assists so far at the World Juniors, it has been the well-rounded nature of his game that’s been most notable.

“I don’t need to be wowing anybody or anything like that,” he said of his performance. “I just got to play solid at both ends of the rink and contribute offensively when I can. I feel like I’m doing that.”

The Colorado Avalanche prospect, who posted 52 points in 50 Western Hockey League outings last season, seems to control the game whenever he’s on the ice and that’s why Tourigny is playing him more than anyone else. Byram leads the team in ice time (21:06 per game) and is tied with partner Jamie Drysdale for the tournament lead with a plus-13 rating.

“I want to make the NHL this year and I think that’s how you do it,” he said. “So, just trying to make sure I have good habits, being underneath the puck, making a good first pass, moving the puck quickly and trying to play a detailed two-way game.”

—

Lines at Canada’s 20-minute practice on Friday:

Holloway – McMichael – Cozens
Perfetti – Zary – Krebs
Quinn – Byfield – Pelletier
Mercer – Suzuki – Tomasino

Byram – Drysdale
Harley – Schneider
Guhle – Barron
Korczak (R) – Spence

Levi
Garand
Gauthier

Injured: Kirby Dach (wrist, out for the tournament), Alex Newhook (upper body, day-to-day)

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Washington Capitals 3-2 win ends Dallas Stars’ winning streak

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October 18, 2024

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WASHINGTON (AP) — Tom Wilson, Dylan Strome and Taylor Raddysh scored to help the Washington Capitals end the Dallas Stars’ season-opening winning streak at four with a 3-2 victory Thursday night.

Wilson’s goal was his third in three games, Strome his second of the season and Raddysh his first since joining the team in free agency last summer. Charlie Lindgren made 22 saves as the Capitals wrapped up this early homestand with back-to-back wins.

The Stars fell from the ranks of the league’s unbeaten teams despite a short-handed goal by Colin Blackwell and one at even strength from Jason Robertson. Rookie Oskar Bäck set up Blackwell for his first NHL point.

Casey DeSmith was screened on two of the three goals he allowed on 26 shots.

LIGHTNING 4, GOLDEN KNIGHTS 3

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Nikita Kucherov scored the winning goal with less than a minute to play just 1:27 after Brandon Hagel had tied it and Tampa Bay rallied to beat Vegas.

Kucherov’s second goal of the game with 55 seconds left was his sixth of the season.

Janis Moser had a goal and two assists for the Lightning, who remain unbeaten. Andrei Vasilevskiy made 22 saves.

Brayden McNabb, Pavel Dorofeyev and Ivan Barbashev had goals for Vegas. Adin Hill turned aside 21 shots.

Jack Eichel, with two assists on Thursday, now has 10 points this season in five games and reached reached double-digit points faster than any other player in Vegas history. He is the 10th U.S.-born player to accomplish the feat.

After Barbashev put Vegas up 3-2 early in the second, Hagel pulled Tampa Bay even at 3 with 2:22 remaining in the third.

BLUE JACKETS 6, SABRES 4

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Kirill Marchenko and Mathieu Olivier each had a goal and an assist and Daniil Tarasov made 21 saves to help Columbus to a win over Buffalo.

Yegor Chinakhov, Adam Fantilli, Zachary Aston-Reese and Damon Severson also scored for Columbus, and Zach Werenski added two assists.

Ryan McLeod, Owen Power and JJ Peterka scored for Buffalo, and Jiri Kulich added his first NHL goal. Devon Lev stopped 19 shots for the Sabres (1-5-1), who have lost two straight road games and five of their first six overall.

CANUCKS 3, FLORIDA 2, OT

SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — J.T. Miller scored 2:09 into overtime and Vancouver got their first win of the season, beating Florida.

Teddy Blueger and Quinn Hughes had goals for Vancouver, with Kevin Lankinen stopping 26 shots.

Anton Lundell got his fourth goal in the last three games for Florida and Jesper Boqvist also scored for the Panthers, who got 30 saves from Sergei Bobrovsky.

Florida remained without forwards Aleksander Barkov (lower body) and Matthew Tkachuk (illness).

DEVILS 3, SENATORS 1

OTTAWA, Ontario (AP) — Jacob Markstrom stopped 30 shots and lost his shutout bid in the final minutes as New Jersey beat Ottawa.

Erik Haula, Nathan Bastian and Paul Cotter scored for the Devils, who won for the third time in four games and improved to 5-2-0.

The Senators, who were coming off an 8-7 overtime victory against Los Angeles on Monday, struggled to beat Markstrom.

Brady Tkachuk was the only scorer for the Senators, beating Markstrom, with a power-play goal with 65 seconds remaining in the third period.

Anton Forsberg, making his second straight start and hoping to rebound after getting pulled Monday, made 32 saves in the loss.

Haula opened the scoring early in the second period and Bastian added a short-handed goal, giving New Jersey a 2-0 lead after 40 minutes. Cotter scored midway through the third.

RANGERS 5, RED WING 2

DETROIT (AP) — Artemi Panarin had his eighth career hat trick and New York rolled to a victory over Detroit.

Panarin became the first Rangers player to have multiple points in the first four games of a season. He scored twice on the power play. Vincent Trocheck also had a power- play goal and assisted on all of Panarin’s goals.

Jonathan Quick made 29 saves in his season debut. Victor Mancini also scored.

The Rangers have won the last five meetings, including twice this week. New York had a 4-1 home victory over Detroit on Monday night.

Moritz Seider and J.T. Compher scored for Detroit. Red Wings goalie Cam Talbot was pulled in the second period after allowing five goals.

KINGS 4, CANADIENS 1

MONTREAL (AP) — David Rittich made 26 saves a night after being benched in the second period in Toronto, helping road-weary Los Angeles snap a three-game losing streak with a victory over Montreal.

Los Angeles improved to 2-1-2 on a season-opening, seven-game trip necessitated by arena renovations.

Rittich rebounded after allowing four goals on 14 shots in a 6-2 loss to the Maple Leafs. Alex Laferriere, Mikey Anderson, Andreas Englund and Adrian Kempe scored.

Justin Barron scored for Montreal (2-3-0). Sam Montembeault stopped 28 shots. He made a save on Kevin Fiala on a penalty shot.

BLUES 1, ISLANDERS 0, OT

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Joel Hofer made 34 saves and assisted on Jake Neighbours’ goal at 2:04 of overtime in St. Louis victory over New York.

Hofer had his second career shutout in his and the team’s second overtime victory of the season.

Philip Broberg carried the puck into the New York zone and made a centering pass to Neighbours for the winner.

Islanders goalie Ilya Sorkin made 29 saves.

Blues defenseman Nick Leddy sat out because of a lower-body injury, the first game he has missed this season. Leddy played in all 82 games last season.

OILERS 4, PREDATORS 2

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Brett Kulak scored twice and Connor McDavid added his first goal of the season to lead Edmonton to a victory over reeling Nashville.

Jeff Skinner also scored and Calvin Pickard made 25 saves for the defending Western Conference champion Oilers, who have won consecutive games after beginning the season with a three-game skid.

Filip Forsberg and Jonathan Marchessault scored and Juuse Saros made 32 saves for Nashville (0-4).

Forsberg’s goal midway through the first period gave Nashville its first lead of the season. That lasted less than six minutes before Kulak tied it.

Kulak sealed it with an empty-netter in the final minute for the defenseman’s first career two-goal game.

BLACKHAWKS 4, SHARKS 2

CHICAGO (AP) — Tyler Bertuzzi and Nick Foligno each scored a power-play goal, and Chicago beat San Jose.

Taylor Hall and Jason Dickinson also scored for Chicago. Connor Bedard and Teuvo Teravainen each had two assists.

Hall, who missed most of last season because of right knee surgery, put the Blackhawks in front 4:20 into the first period. It was Hall’s first goal since Nov. 5 and No. 267 for his career.

Tyler Toffoli and Fabian Zetterlund scored for San Jose, which trailed 3-0 early in the second. William Eklund and Mikael Granlund had two assists each.

The Sharks dropped to 0-2-2 under Ryan Warsofsky, who was promoted to head coach in June.

Petr Mrazek had 20 saves for Chicago, and Vitek Vanecek made 23 stops for San Jose.

KRAKEN 6, FLYERS 4

SEATTLE (AP) — Eeli Tolvanen, Jordan Eberle, and Shane Wright scored three goals in less than three minutes in the second period and Seattle held off a Philadelphia rally in a victory.

Tolvanen’s goal broke a 2-2 tie at the 14:57 mark. Eberle made it a two-goal game with a goal at 17:44. Eight seconds later, Wright scored to give Seattle a three-goal lead.

Jared McCann tied the game at 2-2 with the first of Seattle’s four second-period goals.

Cam York and Jamie Drysdale scored to pull Philadelphia within 5-4 in the third period, but Oliver Bjorkstrand responded with a goal to push Seattle’s lead to two with just over five minutes left in the game.

Scott Laughton scored twice for the Flyers in the first period, while Brandon Montour scored one in for the Kraken.

Chandler Stephenson had an assist in his 500th NHL game. Seattle’s Philipp Grubauer had 21 saves.

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Canada’s Dabrowski, New Zealand’s Routliffe out of Japan Women’s Open after walkover

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October 17, 2024

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OSAKA, Japan – Canada’s Gabriela Dabrowski and New Zealand’s Erin Routliffe are out of the Japan Women’s Open tennis tournament.

Spain’s Cristina Bucsa and Romania’s Monica Niculescu advanced to the final on Thursday by way of walkover.

The fourth seeds were supposed to play the top-seeded Dabrowski and Routliffe in the semifinals.

Bucsa and Niculescu will next face third-seeded Ena Shibahara of Japan and Laura Siegemund of Germany in the final.

Dabrowski and Routliffe defeated Japan’s Shuko Aoyama and Eri Hozumi in the quarterfinals 6-2, 6-4 on Wednesday to advance.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 17, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

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Mountain West commissioner says she’s heartbroken over turmoil surrounding San Jose State volleyball

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October 17, 2024

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LAS VEGAS (AP) — Mountain West Conference Commissioner Gloria Nevarez said Thursday the forfeitures that volleyball teams are willing to take to avoid playing San Jose State is “not what we celebrate in college athletics” and that she is heartbroken over what has transpired this season surrounding the Spartans and their opponents.

Four teams have canceled games against San Jose State: Boise State, Southern Utah, Utah State and Wyoming, with none of the schools explicitly saying why they were forfeiting.

A group of Nevada players issued a statement saying they will not take the floor when the Wolf Pack are scheduled to host the Spartans on Oct. 26. They cited their “right to safety and fair competition,” though their school reaffirmed Thursday that the match is still planned and that state law bars forfeiture “for reasons related to gender identity or expression.”

All those schools, except Southern Utah, are in the Mountain West. New Mexico, also in the MWC, went ahead with its home match on Thursday night, which was won by the Spartans, 3-1, the team’s first victory since Sept. 24.

“It breaks my heart because they’re human beings, young people, student-athletes on both sides of this issue that are getting a lot of national negative attention,” Nevarez said in an interview with The Associated Press at Mountain West basketball media days. “It just doesn’t feel right to me.”

Republican governors of Idaho, Nevada, Utah and Wyoming have made public statements in support of the cancellations, citing a need for fairness in women’s sports. Former President Donald Trump, the GOP nominee in this year’s presidential race, this week referenced an unidentified volleyball match when he was asked during a Fox News town hall about transgender athletes in women’s sports.

“I saw the slam, it was a slam. I never saw a ball hit so hard, hit the girl in the head,” Trump replied before he was asked what can be done. “You just ban it. The president bans it. You just don’t let it happen.”

After Trump’s comment, San Diego State issued a statement that said “it has been incorrectly reported that an San Diego State University student-athlete was hit in the face with a volleyball during match play with San Jose State University. The ball bounced off the shoulder of the student-athlete, and the athlete was uninjured and did not miss a play.”

San Jose State has not made any direct comments about the politicians’ “fairness” references, and Nevarez did not go into details.

“I’m learning a lot about the issue,” Nevarez said. “I don’t know a lot of the language yet or the science or the understanding nationally of how this issue plays out. The external influences are so far on either side. We have an election year. It’s political, so, yeah, it feels like a no-win based on all the external pressure.”

The cancellations could mean some teams will not qualify for the conference tournament Nov. 27-30 in Las Vegas, where the top six schools are slated to compete for the league championship.

“The student-athlete (in question) meets the eligibility standard, so if a team does not play them, it’s a forfeit, meaning they take a loss,” Nevarez said.

Ahead of the Oct. 26 match in Reno. Nevada released a statement acknowledging that “a majority of the Wolf Pack women’s volleyball team” had decided to forfeit against San Jose State. The school said only the university can take that step but any player who decides not to play would face no punishment.

___

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