The Maple Leafs held a practice and scrimmage at the Ford Performance Centre on Saturday.
Frederik Andersen has a theory about how Toronto’s top stars got so many odd-man rushes against him during Saturday’s scrimmage.
“Something our team needs to adjust for a little bit is they’re cherry picking,” the Leafs goalie said with a smile. “I haven’t seen Willie be in their end yet.”
William Nylander scored two goals in leading Team Matthews past Team Andersen 6-2 in the second of five planned scrimmages at training camp. The series, which pits close friends Andersen and Auston Matthews against each other, is now even at a game apiece.
“It’s a best-of-three now,” Andersen said deadpan, “so we’ll recover and reset here.”
Andersen is facing a stiff test in the scrimmages as Team Matthews features Toronto’s top two forward lines, which is a hard group to keep in check at the best of times. Matthews (on a breakaway) and John Tavares (on a two-on-one rush) both scored during Saturday’s romp.
“All joking aside, they’re some of better players in the league, some of the deadliest players when they get the puck in the scoring situation so that’s a tough opponent,” Andersen said. “It’s good for me to be able to see a lot of shots from them.”
Andersen posted the worst save percentage of his NHL career (.909) while starting 52 of Toronto’s 70 regular season games. It’s imperative that the Leafs get the 30-year-old feeling good about his game during this training camp.
“He had a tough day in the scrimmage,” head coach Sheldon Keefe acknowledged. “I think that his team has to do a better job in front of him. I thought he was the real stand out of the day yesterday … he’s just like everybody else, finding his way to get ready to play and I’ve got no doubts that he will be.”
”I’ve been feeling really good in practices,” Andersen said. “The game situations, getting the timing of everything and reading plays, yeah, that’s what’s kind of missing and these games are good for that stuff.”
Jack Campbell, acquired in a February trade with the Los Angeles Kings, has stabilized the back-up spot, but Keefe made it clear the Leafs will go as far as the six-foot-four Dane carries them.
“Frederik Andersen, from my perspective, was a big reason why that series against Boston went to seven games [last year with] the work that he did to be the backbone of the team at different times. We feel good about his ability to do that. So, when you have somebody who has done it for you and has that ability you’re going to give them more of an opportunity, of course, and trust that they’ll find their way … Fred’s our guy and we have to do all we can to have him prepared.”
Andersen jokes that Nylander is cherry picking at Leafs scrimmage
After a lopsided loss to Auston Matthews’ squad, goaltender Frederik Andersen joked that the opposing team was cherry picking a bit during Game 2 and they’ll be ready for the third and deciding game. Mark Masters has more on the confidence Sheldon Keefe has in his goaltender.
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Andersen, who posted a .922 save percentage in the series against Boston last year, is using the early part of camp to experiment with some new equipment. The CN Tower pads from Bauer, which he wore before the pandemic pause, are gone.
“Just something I’m trying to work out so that’s all I’ll say about that,” Andersen noted coyly. “I’m just trying to make sure I can be the best I can be.”
How important is the feel of equipment to a goalie?
“It means everything,” he said.
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Zach Hyman took a Jason Spezza shot off his leg during special teams work on Friday and appeared to be in a great deal of discomfort. After chatting with the medical staff, he completed the on-ice work. But the winger missed Saturday’s practice and scrimmage. Per NHL policy, Keefe could only say Hyman was “unfit” to take the ice.
In his absence, 18-year-old Nick Robertson got the chance to skate alongside Matthews and Nylander.
“Really didn’t want to disrupt anything else too much,” Keefe explained. “It was a good chance to give Nick a chance to be able to play with those guys and if it can help his confidence and his experience a little bit, I thought that would be a good thing. It wasn’t about Nick, frankly, it was just more about making sure we had consistency throughout the rest of the lines that we wanted to maintain.”
Nick Robertson with a shorthanded goal gives Team Matthews a 3-1 lead midway through the first period of #Leafs scrimmage pic.twitter.com/SwTSZlSChC
Robertson scored a shorthanded goal in the scrimmage and was a force on the forecheck, but afterwards Keefe did his best to slow the hype train.
“I know you guys want to make the story about Nick but that’s not the story of the day for me,” the coach said. “Every experience we can get for Nick is a positive one and if something breaks free and really starts to come together than that’s a positive for both he and us, but we’re just really focused on getting our team ready.”
Keefe indicated there will likely be a different look on that line for Sunday’s scrimmage.
Robertson, who scored 55 goals in 46 games with the Peterborough Petes, skated in Toronto’s reserve group in Friday’s practice.
Leafs Ice Chips: With Hyman out, Robertson promoted
Zach Hyman wasn’t on the ice for the Maple Leafs scrimmage on Saturday and as Mark Masters reports, that gave rookie Nick Robertson a chance to skate alongside Auston Matthews and William Nylander.
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During the season pause, Mitch Marner made an appearance on the Connor Carrick Podcast telling his former teammate that “the award that would be really cool to be acknowledged for is the Selke.”
The 2019-20 nominees for the Selke Trophy, given to the league’s top defensive forward, will be unveiled on Monday. Marner was asked how close he feels to being in the conversation.
“No idea,” he said. “At the start of the season you just put goals in your mind to try and do, but at the same time when you’re playing hockey you don’t think about them too much.”
“He tried really hard when he was a bit younger to really grow that area of his game and he’s done an outstanding job,” said defenceman Morgan Rielly. “He understands the importance of it and has worked really hard to improve it and it’s obvious with how he plays in our end. He takes that very seriously.”
As he looks to take another step in that department, Marner has been keeping a close eye on St. Louis Blues centre and reigning Selke winner Ryan O’Reilly.
“I got the chance to play with him at the Worlds and see how professional he is on the ice, at practice and everything like that,” Marner said. “He doesn’t get as much love as he should. He’s a guy that every single night plays his heart out. He plays every aspect of the game right. He plays power play, penalty kill, if you need a goal or need to stop a goal from going in, he’s always on the ice to do any of those things. That’s the guy I really enjoy watching.”
Marner points out that centres are often viewed as the top defensive forwards so in the future he wants to put himself in a position to be trusted to take face-offs while continuing to fine tune his play around the net.
The 23-year-old is also determined to help the Leafs penalty kill get better. Toronto’s unit was absolutely torched by the Boston Bruins in the last two playoffs.
“We got to talk more coming into our zone,” said Marner, who is on Toronto’s top PK unit alongside Hyman. “When get a chance to jump pucks we got to go at people fast, make people feel uncomfortable on the power play and when we do get those opportunities to get outs we got to be talking to each other and figuring the best way out. And also keeping the shifts short and keeping everyone fresh on the ice. The best penalty kill is when you’re fresh and able to go 100 per cent the whole time.”
During the regular season, Toronto’s kill rate was 77.7 per cent, which ranked 21st in the NHL.
Selke-minded Marner is studying O’Reilly’s game
Mitch Marner admits he made it a goal at the start of the season to be in the discussion for the Selke Trophy as one of the top defensive forwards and says he’s learned a lot from last year’s winner Ryan O’Reilly.
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Lines in Leafs scrimmage: BOLD = Participated in main practice session
TEAM MATTHEWS Goals: Nylander (2), Matthews, Malgin, Tavares, Robertson
TORONTO – Singles star Leylah Fernandez and doubles specialist Gabriela Dabrowski will anchor Canada’s five-player lineup when the team tries to defend its Billie Jean King Cup title in mid-November.
The 26th-ranked Fernandez, the 2021 U.S. Open finalist from Laval, Que., is the lone Canadian in the top 100 of the WTA Tour’s singles rankings.
Dabrowski, from Ottawa, is ranked fourth on the doubles list. The 2023 U.S. Open women’s doubles champion won mixed doubles bronze with Felix Auger-Aliassime at the recent Paris Olympics.
Marina Stakusic of Mississauga, Ont., returns after a breakout performance last year, capped by her singles win in Canada’s 2-0 victory over Italy in the final. Vancouver’s Rebecca Marino is also back and Bianca Andreescu, the 2019 U.S. Open champion from Mississauga, Ont., returns to the squad for the first time since 2022.
“Winning the Billie Jean King Cup in 2023 was a dream come true for us, and not only that, but I feel like we made a statement to the world about the strength of this nation when it comes to tennis,” Canada captain Heidi El Tabakh said Monday in a release. “Once again, we have a very strong team this year with Bianca joining Leylah, Gaby, Rebecca and Marina, making it an extremely powerful team that is more than capable of going all the way.
“At the end of the day, our goal is to make Canada proud, and we’ll do our best to bring the same level of effort and excitement that we had in last year’s finals.”
Fernandez, who beat Jasmine Paolini to clinch Canada’s first-ever title at the competition, is ranked No. 42 in doubles.
Canada, which received an automatic berth as defending champion, will play the winner of the first-round tie between Great Britain and Germany on Nov. 17 at Malaga’s Martin Carpena Arena.
Australia, Italy and wild-card entry Czechia also received first-round byes. The tournament, which continues through Nov. 20, also includes host Spain, Slovakia, the United States, Poland, Japan and Romania.
Stakusic is up 27 spots to No. 128 in the latest world singles rankings. Marino is at No. 134 and Andreescu, the 2019 U.S. Open champion, is ranked 167th.
Canada will look to become the first team since Czechia in 2016 to successfully defend its Billie Jean King Cup title.
Malaga will also host the Nov. 19-24 Davis Cup Final 8. The Canadian men qualified over the weekend with a 2-1 victory over Great Britain in Manchester.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 16, 2024.
PITTSBURGH – Sidney Crosby plans to remain a Pittsburgh Penguin for at least three more years.
The Penguins announced on Monday that they re-signed the 37-year-old from Cole Harbour, N.S., to a two-year contract extension that has an average annual value of US$8.7 million. The deal runs through the 2026-27 season.
Crosby was eligible to sign an extension on July 1 with him entering the final season of a 12-year, $104.4-million deal that carries an $8.7-million salary cap hit.
At the NHL/NHLPA player media tour in Las Vegas last Monday, he said things were positive and he was optimistic about a deal getting done.
The three-time Stanley Cup champion is coming off a 42-goal, 94-point campaign that saw him finish tied for 12th in the league scoring race.
Crosby has spent all 19 of his NHL seasons in Pittsburgh, amassing 592 goals and 1,004 assists in 1,272 career games.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 16, 2024.
MONTREAL – Tadej Pogacar was so dominant on Sunday, Canada’s Michael Woods called it a race for second.
Pogacar, a three-time Tour de France champion from Slovenia, pedalled to a resounding victory at the Grand Prix Cycliste de Montreal.
The UAE Team Emirates leader crossed the finish line 24 seconds ahead of Spain’s Pello Bilbao of Bahrain — Victorious to win the demanding 209.1-kilometre race on a sunny, 28 C day in Montreal. France’s Julian Alaphilippe of Soudal Quick-Step was third.
“He’s the greatest rider of all time, he’s a formidable opponent,” said Woods, who finished 45 seconds behind the leader in eighth. “If you’re not at your very, very best, then you can forget racing with him, and today was kind of representative of that.
“He’s at such a different level that if you follow him, it can be lights out.”
Pogacar slowed down before the last turn to celebrate with the crowd, high-five fans on Avenue du Parc and cruise past the finish line with his arms in the air after more than five hours on the bike.
The 25-year-old joined Belgium’s Greg Van Avermaet as the only multi-time winners in Montreal after claiming the race in 2022. He also redeemed a seventh-place finish at the Quebec City Grand Prix on Friday.
“I was disappointed, because I had such good legs that I didn’t do better than seventh,” Pogacar said. “To bounce back after seventh to victory here, it’s just an incredible feeling.”
It’s Pogacar’s latest win in a dominant year that includes victories at the Tour de France and Giro d’Italia.
Ottawa’s Woods (Israel Premier-Tech) tied a career-best in front of the home crowd in Montreal, but hoped for more after claiming a stage at the Spanish Vuelta two weeks ago.
“I wanted a better result,” the 37-year-old rider said. “My goal was a podium, but at the same time I’m happy with the performance. In bike racing, you can’t always get the result you want and I felt like I raced really well, I animated the race, I felt like I was up there.”
Pogacar completed the 17 climbs up and down Mount Royal near downtown in five hours 28 minutes 15 seconds.
He made his move with 23.3 kilometres to go, leaving the peloton in his dust as he pedalled into the lead — one he never relinquished.
Bilbao, Alaphilippe, Alex Aranburu (Movistar Team) and Bart Lemmen (Visma–Lease) chased in a group behind him, with Bilbao ultimately separating himself from the pack. But he never came close to catching Pogacar, who built a 35-second lead with one lap left to go.
“It was still a really hard race today, but the team was on point,” Pogacar said. “We did really how we planned, and the race situation was good for us. We make it hard in the last final laps, and they set me up for a (takeover) two laps to go, and it was all perfect.”
Ottawa’s Derek Gee, who placed ninth in this year’s Tour de France, finished 48th in Montreal, and called it a “hard day” in the heat.
“I think everyone knows when you see Tadej on the start line that it’s just going to be full gas,” Gee said.
Israel Premier-Tech teammate Hugo Houle of Sainte-Perpétue, Que., was 51st.
Houle said he heard Pogacar inform his teammates on the radio that he was ready to attack with two laps left in the race.
“I said then, well, clearly it’s over for me,” Houle said. “You see, cycling isn’t that complicated.”
Australia’s Michael Matthews won the Quebec City GP for a record third time on Friday, but did not finish in Montreal. The two races are the only North American events on the UCI World Tour.
Michael Leonard of Oakville, Ont., and Gil Gelders and Dries De Bondt of Belgium broke away from the peloton during the second lap. Leonard led the majority of the race before losing pace with 45 kilometres to go.
Only 89 of 169 riders from 24 teams — including the Canadian national team — completed the gruelling race that features 4,573 metres in total altitude.
Next up, the riders will head to the world championships in Zurich, Switzerland from Sept. 21 to 29.
Pogacar will try to join Eddy Merckx (1974) and Stephen Roche (1987) as the only men to win three major titles in a season — known as the Triple Crown.
“Today gave me a lot of confidence, motivation,” Pogacar said. “I think we are ready for world championships.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 15, 2024.
