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How Leafs can fill the defensive void left by Jake Muzzin’s injury

Published

2 years ago

October 26, 2022

The Leafs have a hole to fill on the blueline after Jake Muzzin was placed on LTIR, and the Coyotes have a prized d-man available. Will Dubas take a swing? (Getty)

In an expected move, the Toronto Maple Leafs placed defenseman Jake Muzzin on long-term injured reserve (LTIR) with a neck injury on Tuesday.

Muzzin left during an Oct. 17 loss to the Arizona Coyotes and did not return. The 33-year-old has suffered several ailments during his tenure with the Maple Leafs and this latest setback renders the Maple Leafs scrambling for a suitable replacement. It’s also important to note that Muzzin missed training camp with a back injury.

How does Muzzin’s LTIR designation affect the Maple Leafs for the remainder of the year? We’ll break it down here.

Leafs could take a big swing at Jakob Chychrun

CapFriendly was the first outlet to break the news, and it’s a good place to start. Muzzin’s absence frees up $5.625 million in Toronto’s LTIR pool. How can the Maple Leafs mobilize with this newfound cash?

Let’s start with the home run swing that many are hoping Maple Leafs general manager Kyle Dubas will take. Jakob Chychrun, the 24-year-old star defenseman for the Arizona Coyotes, is readily available on the trade market although the first part is a misnomer, an overly simplistic gambit. Toronto can surely afford Chychrun’s salary with Muzzin out of the picture. Carrying a $4.6-million cap hit for the next three seasons, Chychrun is unquestionably one of the best values in the league and top-end defenders entering their primes like this are rarely made available for good reason.

What’s the asking price? Toronto would almost certainly need to depart with one (or more) of its future first-round picks, along with one of their future cornerstones in Nick Robertson, Matthew Knies or Rasmus Sandin. If the idea of sending a first and Robertson made you balk, as a Maple Leafs fan, we don’t entirely blame you. It’s a lot to give up. But you’re also making a calculated bet that the Maple Leafs are firmly in their Cup contention window, while securing an asset that bridges the win-now timeline with a more patient long-view.

Sportsnet’s Jeff Marek reported Saturday that Chychrun has asked for a trade, but the Coyotes are asking for a package that equates to two first-round picks along with some established players. This may read as overly simplistic, but would you trade your 2023 and 2025 firsts along with Rasmus Sandin or Matthew Knies for an ascending left-shot star three years of team control? Dubas and his staff are surely going over the machinations now.

It’s also worth noting that Timothy Liljegren is working his way back from offseason hernia surgery and once he’s ready to return to the Maple Leafs, his $1.4 million salary will count against Toronto’s cap space.

Filling Muzzin’s void without signings or trades

Trying to fill the void that Muzzin leaves internally is more difficult to stomach, particularly for the rightfully impatient sect of the fanbase that wants an immediate replacement. Toronto called up Filip Kral from the AHL’s Toronto Marlies as an immediate action. Kral is highly-regarded within Toronto’s system — he’s a late-round find from the 2018 draft — but the team will almost certainly need to shelter his minutes upon his promotion. He isn’t a flashy player and will aim to mitigate mistakes, but there has to be a learning curve to be expected for a 23-year-old who couldn’t crack the opening night roster. Kral will be used as the seventh defenseman, while the more experienced and reliable Victor Mete slides in as the sixth defender alongside veteran Mark Giordano.

Rasmus Sandin has been matched with Justin Holl in Muzzin’s absence and though we’re dealing with an admittedly small sample, there’s enough to suggest that this pairing simply isn’t good enough to be considered Toronto’s second-pair for the remainder of the season. Sandin-Holl played 44 minutes and 22 seconds together at 5-on-5, with a 47.6 Corsi and a dreadful 37.2 percent share of the expected goals, according to Natural Stat Trick.

And what may be more alarming is that Sandin has been much better without Holl, whose roving style of play takes some time for his partner to get adjusted to. Sandin is proving to be one of Toronto’s best players at suppressing chances, but Holl’s freelancing style of game where he jumps into the rush as a fourth forward probably causes some headaches for his new partner.

Morgan Rielly and TJ Brodie aren’t going to be broken up in order to give Toronto more balance and this notion would be viewed as a break-glass-in-emergency type of move for Sheldon Keefe. Rielly in particular has been on the ice for nine goals at 5-on-5, but continuity, stability and quality of opponent matters, so Toronto is banking on the rest of its core to step up while demanding its best defenseman begins to play at an All-Star level again. He was never considered an elite shutdown defender, but he needs to amplify his game in his own end with Muzzin out.

Liljegren is slated to return, while Jordie Benn is an NHL-caliber defenseman the Maple Leafs have in their system, but he’s also recovering from a groin injury sustained during the preseason. Benn’s $750,000 cap hit isn’t particularly difficult to work around, either.

The wait-and-see approach might be Toronto’s most practical option, while Sandin’s workload and responsibility in particular takes a dramatic leap. It would be incumbent upon Dubas to go for a major swing right now, but with so much riding on this season, with his job prospectus among the factors to be evaluated, the Maple Leafs may be forced to rely on its own internal development to weather the absence created by Muzzin’s injury.

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Ravens win fifth straight game by beating Bucs 41-31

Published

11 hours ago

October 22, 2024

Anne Joseph

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:

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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.

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Struggling Whitecaps, Timbers set to meet in MLS wild-card matchup

Published

11 hours ago

October 22, 2024

Anne Joseph

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.

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No rugby, field hockey, badminton, triathlon or cricket at leaner 2026 Commonwealth Games

Published

11 hours ago

October 22, 2024

Anne Joseph

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.

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AP sports:

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