Sports

‘CRAZY END TO THE GAME’: Gregor an unlikely hero as Maple Leafs beat Panthers in shootout

Published

11 months ago

November 29, 2023

Panthers winger and Leafs nemesis Matthew Tkachuk (19) crashes into Toronto goaltender Joseph Woll as Matthew Knies defends on Tuesday. The Leafs finalky won the game 2-1 in a shootout. THE CANADIAN PRESS Photo by Frank Gunn /THE CANADIAN PRESS

Noah Gregor, Maple Leafs saviour. Weird but true.

The fourth-line winger scored the shootout winner against the Florida Panthers in a 2-1 victory at Scotiabank Arena on Tuesday after he scored the only Toronto goal in regulation.

Joseph Woll continued to take a firmer grip on the Leafs’ No. 1 job, making 31 saves.

“Outstanding, just so solid,” Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe said. “His play through the final segment of the first period (when the Leafs sagged) keeps us around in the game.”

In the shootout, the Panthers’ Nick Cousins hit the post after Gregor scored, ensuring the Leafs’ win. Cousins was the 12th shooter.

Florida thought it won when the 10th shooter, Evan Rodrigues, beat Woll. But a review, initiated by the NHL, showed Rodrigues double-tapped the puck and the goal did not count.

Gregor was in the tunnel heading back to the room when Morgan Rielly called out and said it was being reviewed.

“I’ve never seen that before,” said Gregor, who added it was his first shootout goal in the NHL. “It’s a crazy end to the game. When we got back from the tunnel, Keefer told me I was going. I think everyone thought the game was over.”

In starting a three-game home stand, the Leafs won after losing two in a row.

A scare went into the Leafs when Mitch Marner took a Matthew Tkachuk shot to the face in the first period and dropped to the ice. Marner got up and went directly to the Leafs’ dressing room. Marner came back to start the second period, wearing a minor-hockey style cage to protect his face.

“Seems fine, other than a pretty good gash on his cheek, on his jawline,” Keefe said.

The Leafs had a good opportunity to win in regulation when Jonah Gadjovich combed Gregor’s face with his stick and was assessed a double minor for high-sticking at 16:56 of the third. But Toronto could not get its power play organized, and the second minor became moot when the Leafs were called for too many men at 19:54, their NHL-leading eighth bench minor.

The Leafs are 0-for-11 in their past three games on the power play.

GREGOR A FORCE

Much was made going into the game about the line changes Keefe made — swapping Marner, who played with John Tavares, and William Nylander, who skated with Auston Matthews — but it was Gregor who scored a highlight-reel goal to tie the game 1-1 in the second period.

Gregor, who has sneaky speed, flashed down the left side and went high on Panthers goalie Anthony Stolarz at 12:54. It was Gregor’s third goal.

“Huge,” Keefe said. “I really liked his game. Tried to give him a bit extra here and there. It was great to see him come through for the guys.”

Nylander hit the post twice in the second period and drew a couple of penalties. When the Leafs needed their best players to put them in control, however, none could get it done. These tight games against division rivals are the kind where the elite are paid to make a difference. On Tuesday, that did not happen for Toronto.

FIVE GUYS

The Leafs had to play with five defencemen after Mark Giordano was hurt in the first period.

As the second period was starting, the Leafs announced that Giordano would not return because of an upper-body injury.

Already without Timothy Liljegren (ankle) and John Klingberg (hip), the Leafs can’t afford to lose Giordano for a lengthy period of time.

“I haven’t got the final report, but it looks like he is going to miss time,” Keefe said.

If there was pressure on GM Brad Treliving to make a trade for a defenceman, that only increases. The Leafs have been getting by with a shorthanded group on the blue line as it is.

William Lagesson and Simon Benoit were signed for depth roles, not to play every night. The Toronto Marlies aren’t exactly brimming with prospects on defence, though Max Lajoie probably would be in line to get the call if required.

Still, the Leafs can’t expect to be competitive with several defencemen who would not be playing under normal circumstances. The feeling has been that Treliving has to acquire a top-notch defenceman. Now, getting one who could take reps in the bottom four would be a benefit.

START, SCHMART

The Leafs were looking forward to playing their first home game since Nov. 11, when they beat the Vancouver Canucks.

From the way they started, the Leafs played like they wanted to be anywhere else but in their relatively quiet home building.

A goal by Florida’s Kevin Stenlund came after Ryan Lomberg sent Nylander flying in the corner in the Leafs’ end in a battle for the puck. The Leafs didn’t recover and watched as Stenlund beat Woll.

Keep in mind the Panthers played the night before in Ottawa, where they defeated the Senators 5-0. The first was especially ugly for a number of Leafs, especially Matthews and Rielly.

At five-on-five, the Panthers had 20 shot attempts when Rielly was on the ice, and none against. With Matthews on the ice, it was 15 for, none against.

Rielly rebounded as the game progressed and made several fine defensive plays in the third period.

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Canada’s Dabrowski and New Zealand’s Routliffe pick up second win at WTA Finals

Published

23 hours ago

November 5, 2024

Anne Joseph

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – Canada’s Gabriela Dabrowski and New Zealand’s Erin Routliffe remain undefeated in women’s doubles at the WTA Finals.

The 2023 U.S. Open champions, seeded second at the event, secured a 1-6, 7-6 (1), (11-9) super-tiebreak win over fourth-seeded Italians Sara Errani and Jasmine Paolini in round-robin play on Tuesday.

The season-ending tournament features the WTA Tour’s top eight women’s doubles teams.

Dabrowski and Routliffe lost the first set in 22 minutes but levelled the match by breaking Errani’s serve three times in the second, including at 6-5. They clinched victory with Routliffe saving a match point on her serve and Dabrowski ending Errani’s final serve-and-volley attempt.

Dabrowski and Routliffe will next face fifth-seeded Americans Caroline Dolehide and Desirae Krawczyk on Thursday, where a win would secure a spot in the semifinals.

The final is scheduled for Saturday.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published on Nov. 5, 2024.

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Allen nets shutout as Devils burn Oilers 3-0

Published

1 day ago

November 4, 2024

Anne Joseph

EDMONTON – Jake Allen made 31 saves for his second shutout of the season and 26th of his career as the New Jersey Devils closed out their Western Canadian road trip with a 3-0 victory over the Edmonton Oilers on Monday.

Jesper Bratt had a goal and an assist and Stefan Noesen and Timo Meier also scored for the Devils (8-5-2) who have won three of their last four on the heels on a four-game losing skid.

The Oilers (6-6-1) had their modest two-game winning streak snapped.

Calvin Pickard made 13 stops between the pipes for Edmonton.

TAKEAWAYS

Devils: In addition to his goal, Bratt picked up his 12th assist of the young season to give him nine points in his last eight games and now 15 points overall. Nico Hischier remains in the team lead, picking up an assist of his own to give him 16 points for the campaign. He has a point in all but four games this season.

Oilers: Forward Leon Draisaitl was held pointless after recording six points in his previous two games and nine points in his previous four. Draisaitl usually has strong showings against the Devils, coming into the contest with an eight-game point streak against New Jersey and 11 goals in 17 games.

KEY MOMENT

New Jersey took a 2-0 lead on the power play with 3:26 remaining in the second period as Hischier made a nice feed into the slot to Bratt, who wired his third of the season past Pickard.

KEY RETURN?

Oilers star forward and captain Connor McDavid took part in the optional morning skate for the Oilers, leading to hopes that he may be back sooner rather than later. McDavid has been expected to be out for two to three weeks with an ankle injury suffered during the first shift of last Monday’s loss in Columbus.

OILERS DEAL FOR D-MAN

The Oilers have acquired defenceman Ronnie Attard from the Philadelphia Flyers in exchange for defenceman Ben Gleason.

The 6-foot-3 Attard has spent the past three season in the Flyers organization seeing action in 29 career games. The 25-year-old right-shot defender and Western Michigan University grad was originally selected by Philadelphia in the third round of the 2019 NHL Entry Draft. Attard will report to the Oilers’ AHL affiliate in Bakersfield.

UP NEXT

Devils: Host the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday.

Oilers: Host the Vegas Golden Knights on Wednesday.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 4, 2024.

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Mahomes throws 3 TD passes, unbeaten Chiefs beat Buccaneers 30-24 in OT

Published

1 day ago

November 4, 2024

Anne Joseph

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Patrick Mahomes threw for 291 yards and three touchdowns, and Kareem Hunt pounded into the end zone from two yards out in overtime to give the unbeaten Kansas City Chiefs a 30-24 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Monday night.

DeAndre Hopkins had two touchdown receptions for the Chiefs (8-0), who drove through the rain for two fourth-quarter scores to take a 24-17 lead with 4:17 left. But then Kansas City watched as Baker Mayfield led the Bucs the other way in the final minute, hitting Ryan Miller in the end zone with 27 seconds to go in regulation time.

Tampa Bay (4-5) elected to kick the extra point and force overtime, rather than go for a two-point conversion and the win. And it cost the Buccaneers when Mayfield called tails and the coin flip was heads. Mahomes and the Chiefs took the ball, he was 5-for-5 passing on their drive in overtime, and Hunt finished his 106-yard rushing day with the deciding TD plunge.

Travis Kelce had 14 catches for 100 yards with girlfriend Taylor Swift watching from a suite, and Hopkins finished with eight catches for 86 yards as the Chiefs ran their winning streak to 14 dating to last season. They became the sixth Super Bowl champion to start 8-0 the following season.

Mayfield finished with 200 yards and two TDs passing for the Bucs, who have lost four of their last five.

It was a memorable first half for two players who had been waiting to play in Arrowhead Stadium.

The Bucs’ Rachaad White grew up about 10 minutes away in a tough part of Kansas City, but his family could never afford a ticket for him to see a game. He wound up on a circuitous path through Division II Nebraska-Kearney and a California junior college to Arizona State, where he eventually became of a third-round pick of Tampa Bay in the 2022 draft.

Two year later, White finally got into Arrowhead — and the end zone. He punctuated his seven-yard scoring run in the second quarter, which gave the Bucs a 7-3 lead, by nearly tossing the football into the second deck.

Then it was Hopkins’ turn in his first home game since arriving in Kansas City from a trade with the Titans.

The three-time All-Pro, who already had caught four passes, reeled in a third-down heave from Mahomes amid triple coverage for a 35-yard gain inside the Tampa Bay five-yard line. Three plays later, Mahomes found him in the back of the end zone, and Hopkins celebrated his first TD with the Chiefs with a dance from “Remember the Titans.”

Tampa Bay tried to seize control with consecutive scoring drives to start the second half. The first ended with a TD pass to Cade Otton, the latest tight end to shred the Chiefs, and Chase McLaughlin’s 47-yard field goal gave the Bucs a 17-10 lead.

The Chiefs answered in the fourth quarter. Mahomes marched them through the rain 70 yards for a tying touchdown pass, which he delivered to Samaje Perine while landing awkwardly and tweaking his left ankle, and then threw a laser to Hopkins on third-and-goal from the Buccaneers’ five-yard line to give Kansas City the lead.

Tampa Bay promptly went three-and-out, but its defence got the ball right back, and this time Mayfield calmly led his team down field. His capped the drive with a touchdown throw to Miller — his first career TD catch — with 27 seconds to go, and Tampa Bay elected to play for overtime.

UP NEXT

Buccaneers: Host the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday.

Chiefs: Host the Denver Broncos on Sunday.

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AP NFL:

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