The Maple Leafs won with their B- effort in Philadelphia on Saturday night, riding an opportunistic offense, a strong performance from Jack Campbell in his return to the crease, and yet another shorthanded goal to a 6-3 victory.
Your game in 10:
1. With the completely-unreliable Petr Mrazek now something of an afterthought for the rest of the season due to another long-term groin injury, by far the most important aspect of this game was always going to be the performance of Jack Campbell in his first game back in the net. In that regard, this game was a positive step forward.
It was a .906 performance on the stat sheet, but there wasn’t anything he could do about any of the three Flyers goals, and most importantly, Campbell looked like the 2021 version of himself while keeping the score tied early, including a sprawling glove save on Morgan Frost just one minute into the game. The Leafs didn’t exactly ease him in with their play for the first two periods, which might not have been a bad thing in a way — Campbell got to feel the puck early and seemed to find his groove quickly in this game.
He opened and closed his first period in nearly a month with some big saves. With 10 seconds left in the period, Campbell turned aside a scoring chance for Oskar Lindblom, and he was in position on the second opportunity for Travis Konecny (who fired wide) to keep it at 0-0 entering the second period.
He also needed to be sharp to end the second period to keep the game tied at 2-2 as the Leafs were again sloppy closing out the period. Throughout the game, he was sharp reading the play, handled the puck outside of his crease better than he was before the injury, and didn’t give up much in terms of rebound opportunities.
Just one start, but it’s an important first step.
2. The team’s best line by far in a mostly-forgettable first half of the game was the Pierre Engvall – David Kampf – William Nylander trio that generated the Leafs’ first good chance five minutes in and buzzed inside of the offensive zone on many of their shifts.
After a bland shift from the top line to start the second period, the third line came over the boards and generated the Leafs’ first good chance of the middle frame also. On their next shift in the middle frame, in response to the Flyers’ 1-0 goal four minutes into the period, the line went out and put together a hard-working shift where they were buzzing the Flyers’ net, ending in Engvall drawing a holding penalty.
The Leafs’ power play didn’t score on the subsequent man advantage, but it possessed the puck inside the zone for nearly the full two minutes and generated plenty of looks and momentum — that all started with the effort from the Nylander line in response to the goal against.
3. On the surface, it may seem like a strange fit for William Nylander on that line (and I’m not necessarily suggesting that the Leafs’ optimal look up front includes Nylander centered by Kampf), but Pierre Engvall and Nylander, in particular, have had several positive games building chemistry together. When the two are at full flight on the rush, they can get in behind the defense or back the defense off with their speed. They also had a number of good moments applying puck pressure when forechecking and backchecking, where they were able to force turnovers and create offensive opportunities from them, in addition to linking up nicely a few times off of the cycle.
These past few games have been by far the most engaged Nylander has looked in the past month without the puck, and combined with Engvall’s efforts (and David Kampf’s dependable support play), it has led to some quality zone time and chances for this line at 5v5.
The famously inconsistent (in seasons past) Engvall has been stringing together runs of consecutive games where he is a consistent force driving play north with his puck transportation as well as his forechecking and cycling, in addition to his contributions on the penalty kill, where he scored a shorthanded goal that showed off an underrated weapon of his: a hard and accurate shot.
4. The Leafs tied the game at 1-1 right around the midway point of the game after catching the Flyers sleeping on a line change during a called-off icing. TJ Brodie sprung Wayne Simmonds free on a breakaway that Simmonds got a bit of luck finishing off for his first goal in 33 games.
To my eye this season, Brodie has been more of a factor offensively with stretch passes that have sent Leafs attackers in alone or sprung odd-man rushes; it’s good to see him contributing a little more in this area after he was really quiet offensively last season (while bringing a ton of defensive value, to be clear). It’s particularly notable that he’s chipping in a little more offensively knowing he’s currently playing on a pairing with Justin Holl and not Morgan Rielly, with whom he provides the safety valve that supports Rielly’s offensive exploits.
At even strength, Brodie is up to four goals and seven primary assists after recording just one goal and three primary assists last season. If we look at the defensemen that played more than 900 minutes last season, Brodie was bottom five and bottom 10 in goals per 60 and primary assists per 60, respectively; this season, he’s middle of the pack in both categories.
5. Overall, it wasn’t Auston Matthews’ sharpest game over 200 feet, as he was out to lunch in front of his own net on the first two Flyers goals. I think I would’ve gone in a different direction with the starting line for the final frame (if not the second period) after the top line didn’t seem to have its usual stuff and started each period a little bit flat.
Of course, this line can change a game in an instant with a moment or two of brilliance, and that’s exactly what happened in the third period. Matthews’ 50th goal was scored into an empty net, and so was his 51st, only the Flyers hadn’t pulled their goalie for this one. Mitch Marner patiently and surgically sliced through the Flyers defense, froze the goaltender, and handed Matthews one of his easiest goals of the year on a pass from behind the net for the 3-2 go-ahead goal.
6. After the Flyers narrowed the lead to one at 4-3, the top line also switched it on for a shift leading to the Morgan Rielly goal that all but put the game away at 5-3. That’s Rielly’s third goal and ninth point in his last four games. Safe to say he’s heating back up after his zero-goals-and-seven-points-in-17-game stretch.
In a similar vein, coming off of a 14-game goalless drought, John Tavares is now up to seven goals and 15 points in his last 14 after his 6-3 snipe that sealed the game.
7. When you don’t have your best stuff at 5v5, it certainly helps to have a penalty kill that is consistently outplaying power plays and generating chances (and goals) galore of late. Over the last two weeks (seven games), the Leafs’ PK has four goals for and five goals against. And it’s not some unsustainable shooting percentage bender that has them leading the league with 12 shorthanded goals. Over the course of the season, the Leafs’ shot attempts for, scoring chances for, and expected goals for generation at 4v5 are leaps and bounds above the next best team.
The best chance of the Flyers’ first-period power-play went to Pierre Engvall and Ilya Mikheyev, who nearly connected on a backdoor play on a 2v1. On the Flyers’ third-period power play, the Leafs grabbed the game-winner right at the end of the PK via Engvall’s goal off the rush.
The team has multiple forward-pair combinations that can burn the opposing PK with their speed the other way, allowing them to keep the aggressive puck pressure and transition threat alive over the full two minutes; the Flyers were gassed at the end of their power play, and Engvall simply coasted down the ice and ripped it far side.
8. That is two games in a row where the Leafs capped a high-scoring win (7-3 and 6-3) with a fight at the end of the game that their combatant won handily — first, it was Kyle Clifford beating up Brendan Dillon against Winnipeg (a rematch from their Dec. 5 bout), and tonight it was Wayne Simmonds getting the better of Zack MacEwen after the two nearly squared off early in the game (the refs jumped in and broke it up before it started).
I am not here to blow it out of proportion and it obviously has to be kept in perspective in terms of the actual win-loss impact, but there is something to be said for beating a team on the scoreboard and capping it with a win in the alley to settle a score; it probably adds a little swagger to the group and makes everyone skate a little bit taller.
9. Not a ton to dissect about Nick Abruzzese’s nine minutes of ice time tonight in what was mostly a forgettable night for his line with Colin Blackwell and Wayne Simmonds. After one relatively harmless turnover early in the game, Abruzzese completed a few passes throughout the game to continue sequences on the breakout, and he didn’t make any errors of note in terms of missed assignments defensively. All in all, a non-descript first taste of NHL action for the Harvard product, who had zeros across the board on the game sheet.
10. This was just the third game this season in which the Leafs lost the Corsi battle in all three periods of play, but they turned it on in the third period, generated some big shifts and scoring chances, and took full advantage of their opportunities to claim the two points.
Sheldon Keefe’s reflections after the game suggested the players thought they could switch it on intermittently and win this game; they were proven right about that, which is probably why Keefe was harsh in his public assessment of the performance — a bit of extra vigilance around any complacency setting in at this time of year.
The level of urgency is rising with just a dozen or so games left to play, and the Leafs need to bring their best stuff for this big back-to-back against Florida and Tampa on Monday-Tuesday.
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Lamar Jackson threw for 281 yards and five touchdowns, helping the Baltimore Ravens overcome an early double-digit deficit and extend their National Football League winning streak to five games with a 41-31 victory Monday night over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who lost their top two receivers to injuries.
The two-time NFL MVP improved to 23-1 against NFC teams, the best mark by a quarterback against an opposing conference in NFL history. He’s 3-0 against the Bucs (4-3), who faded after taking a 10-0 lead with help from the 100th TD reception of Mike Evans’ career.
Evans departed with a hamstring injury after Baker Mayfield tried to connect with him in the end zone again, and late in the fourth quarter with the game out of reach, leading Bucs receiver Chris Godwin was carted off the field with a left ankle injury. ESPN declined to show replays of Godwin’s injury, which appeared to be severe.
Jackson completed 17 of 22 passes without an interception, including TD throws of nine and four yards to Mark Andrews. He also tossed scoring passes of 49 yards to Rashod Bateman, 18 yards to Justice Hill and 11 yards to Derrick Henry, who rushed for 169 yards on 15 carries. Bateman had four catches for 121 yards.
The Ravens (5-2) rebounded from a slow start on defence, with cornerback Marlon Humphrey turning the game around with a pair of second-quarter interceptions — one of them in the Baltimore end zone. Jackson led a four-play, 80-yard TD drive after the first pick, and the second interception set up Justin Tucker’s 28-yard field goal for a 17-10 halftime lead.
Elsewhere in the NFL:
—
CARDINALS 17 CHARGERS 15
GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Kyler Murray ran for a 44-yard touchdown and led the Cardinals on a drive that set up Chad Ryland’s 32-yard field goal as time expired, and Arizona rallied for a win over Los Angeles.
Cameron Dicker kicked his fifth field goal of the night — this one from 40 yards — to give the Chargers a 15-14 lead with 1:54 left. But the Cardinals (3-4) quickly moved into field goal range, aided by an unnecessary roughness call on Cam Hart that cost Los Angeles (3-3) 15 yards.
Arizona followed that with a bruising 33-yard run by James Conner, who finished with 101 yards on the ground. That eventually set up Ryland’s short field goal and a Cardinals celebration.
It was a frustrating night for the Chargers’ offence, which gained 395 yards but couldn’t find the end zone. Justin Herbert completed 27 of 39 passes for 349 yards.
Dicker booted field goals of 59, 50, 28, 47 and 40 yards, the first of which tied a franchise record for distance.
Murray ran for a spectacular touchdown early in the fourth quarter, rolling to his left before turning on the jets, beating safety Junior Colston to the sideline and then coasting into the end zone for a 14-9 lead.
It was Murray’s second long touchdown run in three weeks after he scored on a 50-yard sprint against San Francisco. It was also Murray’s 20th career game with a touchdown pass and run.
Murray completed 14 of 26 passes for 145 yards, one touchdown and one interception.
VANCOUVER – The Vancouver Whitecaps have been here before — literally and figuratively.
With the season hanging in the balance, the ‘Caps were dealt a blow last week when the club learned it wouldn’t be able to play a post-season wild-card game in its home stadium, B.C. Place, due to a scheduling conflict.
The Whitecaps ceded home field advantage to their regional rival, the Portland Timbers. The two clubs will battle for the final playoff spot in Major League Soccer’s Western Conference in Oregon on Wednesday.
The winner will face No. 1-seed Los Angeles FC in a best-of-three first-round series, starting Sunday.
An unforeseen hurdle like a change of venues is nothing new for the ‘Caps, said defender Ranko Veselinovic, who was part of the team that was forced to relocate first to Portland, then Utah during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“It feels that always something happens for us, but it is what it is. So far, we’ve managed to always find solutions for those situations,” said the Serbian centre back. “But I hope this team can find it one more time, because we need it this time. And it will be a really nice feeling in those circumstances to go in, win and go face L.A. in the next round.”
Vancouver (13-13-8) heads into the post-season winless in its last seven MLS games and with losses in four straight after dropping a 2-1 road decision to Real Salt Lake on Saturday.
The skid followed a run that saw the club go 4-1-3 across all competitions between late August and late September.
There’s just one way to return to that level, said Whitecaps head coach Vanni Sartini.
“The work is the only way to do it. Try to put the work in and try to put the team in a way that they’re going to regain the form and the way that they were in the past,” he said.
Despite the final score, Sartini has seen positives in the way his team played in its two most recent losses.
“I think already we turned the corner,” he said. “And we start from there to build and build and build.”
Facing challenges together can help a team build, whether it’s a winless skid or an unexpected hurdle, said Vancouver’s captain Ryan Gauld.
“When you’re going through adversity, that’s when people start to raise their voice a little bit. You get good when the problems arise, you get a lot of people coming together to make sure we get out of it,” said the Scottish attacking midfielder.
“And we’ve had a tough time the last few games, but everyone’s aware of the fact that we’re a much better team than we’ve shown, and we need to find a way to get back to doing what we’re good at.”
The ‘Caps face a familiar foe in the Timbers (12-11-11).
The two sides have already met three times this season, with each coming out of the series with a win, a loss and a draw.
Portland has also struggled in recent weeks and are winless in their last five MLS outings (0-1-4).
The Timbers boast one of the league’s top offensive units, though, with threats such as Evander. The Brazilian midfielder notched 15 goals and 19 assists during the regular season.
To earn a win on Wednesday, the Whitecaps must be solid defensively, Gauld said.
“They must be one of the best attacks in the league. They have a lot of good players, and they can hurt you if you switch off,” he said. “So just being concentrated from the first whistle, and just being hard to beat, being stuffy. Just being on it for the full 90 minutes.”
A victory in the wild-card match would guarantee Vancouver at least one home playoff game, a factor that Sartini said would be a big reward for his group.
The entire team relished the experience of playing post-season soccer in front of more than 30,000 fans last year, the coach said, and the desire to repeat the feat is high as the club heads to Portland.
“Everyone is happy to be in the playoffs. So we don’t have to be moody to be in the playoff. And we go in there, we’re play one of our rivals. So it’s gonna be a nice game to show up and to play our best game possible.”
VANCOUVER WHITECAPS (13-13-8) AT PORTLAND TIMBERS (12-11-11)
Wednesday, Providence Park
HISTORY BOOKS: This will mark the seventh all-time post-season meeting between the Timbers and ‘Caps, dating back to 1975. The last time the two clubs squared off in a playoff game was during the Western Conference semifinal in 2015. Portland won the two-game aggregate series and went on to hoist the MLS Cup.
ROAD WARRIORS: The ‘Caps boasted a 7-6-4 record on the road during regular-season play — better than the 6-7-4 showing they posted at B.C. Place.
POST-SEASON PARTY: Wednesday will mark the first time the Timbers have hosted a post-season game since 2021.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 22, 2024.
GLASGOW, Scotland (AP) — Scotland conceived rugby sevens in the 1880s yet it will not feature in the scaled-back 2026 Commonwealth Games hosted by Glasgow.
Other sports that have also been dropped include field hockey, triathlon, badminton, Twenty20 cricket, squash, and diving.
The Games will have a 10-sport program in four venues. Athletics and swimming are compulsory while there will also be track cycling, gymnastics, netball, weightlifting, boxing, judo, bowls and 3×3 basketball.
There will also be integrated para events in six of those sports: Athletics, swimming, track cycling, weightlifting, bowls and basketball.
The Games will take place from July 23-Aug. 2 after Glasgow stepped in when the Australian state of Victoria withdrew last year because of rising costs.
It was not easy to decide which sports to include, Commonwealth Games Scotland chairman Ian Reid told the BBC on Tuesday.
“I think everybody recognises that these events need to be more affordable, lighter and we would have loved to have all of our sports and all of our athletes competing but unfortunately it’s just not deliverable or affordable for this time frame,” Reid said.
Athletes and support staff will be housed in hotels. Around 3,000 athletes are expected to compete from up to 74 Commonwealth nations and territories representing a combined total of 2.5 billion people, a third of the world’s entire population.
More than 500,000 tickets made available for spectators.
The Commonwealth Games Federation chief executive Katie Sadleir said: “The 2026 Games will be a bridge to the Commonwealth Games of tomorrow, an exciting first step in our journey to reset and redefine the Games as a truly collaborative, flexible and sustainable model for the future that minimises costs, reduces the environmental footprint, and enhances social impact. In doing so, increasing the scope of countries capable of hosting.”
Glasgow hosted the event in 2014 at a cost of more than 540 million pounds.
