TORONTO – The Maple Leafs will try to get back in the win column on Tuesday without starting goaltender Frederik Andersen, who decided after the morning skate that he isn’t ready to return from a neck injury.
“It’s just part of the process,” explained head coach Sheldon Keefe, while denying Andersen had suffered any setbacks in his recovery. “He [wanted] to get another skate in today and see how he felt. He’s been progressing very well and working towards a return, but not quite there yet.”
Toronto will go back to goaltender Jack Campbell when they host the Arizona Coyotes, marking his third straight start for the club since being acquired via trade with Los Angeles last Wednesday. Campbell is 1-0-1 with a .900 save percentage and 2.85 goals-against average for the Leafs. Third-string goalie Michael Hutchinson will be the backup.
Andersen has been sidelined since hurting his neck in the first period of last week’s 5-3 loss to the Florida Panthers. Commenting on the injury for the first time following Monday’s practice, Andersen wouldn’t pinpoint exactly where in that opening frame the injury occurred – whether in a collision with Mark Pysyk or Frank Vatrano – but was feeling positive about his progress.
The fact Andersen was able to fully participate in Tuesday’s morning skate was encouraging for the Leafs, but Keefe is happy to have Campbell manning the net until his starter is back to full health.
“I just like the confidence that he has in himself and the confidence that he brings to our team,” Keefe said. “He’s excited for every opportunity that comes about, and it doesn’t matter how it comes about, he’s ready for it. Today he didn’t come to the arena necessarily thinking he’d be starting, but he’s ready for anything that comes.”
Facing the Coyotes, Campbell and the Leafs are prepared for an opponent riding high off their dramatic, come-from-behind victory over Montreal on Monday, and to challenge their own recent habit of letting games slip away in the third period.
Last week, the Leafs blew a 3-1 third-period lead in Monday’s loss to Florida, and did so again in Friday’s game against Anaheim before managing to win 5-4 in overtime. The next night in Montreal, Toronto had a 1-0 lead in the third but put only one shot on net the entire frame, eventually falling 2-1 in overtime.
Keefe insists the run of poor play exhibited by the Leafs late in those games isn’t indicative of a deeper problem.
“We think that we had a bad week in that regard,” he said. “Sometimes, when it happens like that, it can be something big that snowballs, and you want to control it and you want to be aware of it. Sometimes, it’s just happenstance. Each game is unique. We’re not overthinking that; we believe in our group, we’re confident in the greater sampling of what we’ve done and we want to make sure the focus is on not putting ourselves in that position again.”
Still, in the 33 games since Keefe took over as head coach on Nov. 20, Toronto ranks fourth in the NHL in third-period goals against (40), and sits seventh in goals for (41). That’s enough to suggest increased diligence in the third would go a long way in helping Toronto stay in the postseason picture.
With 26 regular-season games to go, the Leafs are perched at third place in the Atlantic Division, just two points ahead of Florida with the Panthers holding a game in hand.
“I think that maybe for a little bit we’ve been getting a little too loose in the third,” said forward Alexander Kerfoot. “I think last game [in Montreal], we did a really good job defensively, but maybe we overcompensated a little bit and we were sitting back maybe too much and they dominated the run of play in the third period. I don’t think we want to sit back, but we also have to have the right defensive posture.”
The Leafs have been focused on improving play in their defensive zone all season, but particularly since returning from the All-Star Break in January.
Over the past seven games, Toronto’s shots against have dropped slightly to 30.1 per game from 32.3 on the season. The trick for the Leafs is to find enough balance where attention to defensive detail doesn’t sap their offensive powers.
“I think it’s just challenging the inside a little bit more,” said Auston Matthews. “The focus a lot lately has just been our defensive play and making sure that structure is there, but at the same time, when we get the puck, it’s [like] get going and go the other way and play on offence and utilize our talent and ability. That’s obviously something that’s been lacking just a bit lately. But in the end, playing well defensively is going to lead the offence and we just have to make sure we capitalize on that.”
VANCOUVER – The Vancouver Canucks announced Tuesday that defenceman Alex Edler will sign a one-day contract in order to officially retire as a member of the NHL team.
The signing will be part of a celebration of Edler’s career held Oct. 11 when the Canucks host the Philadelphia Flyers.
The Canucks selected Edler, from Ostersund, Sweden, in the third round (91st overall) of the 2004 NHL draft.
He played in 925 career games for the Canucks between the 2006-07 and 2020-21 seasons, ranking fourth in franchise history and first among defencemen.
The 38-year-old leads all Vancouver defencemen with 99 goals, 310 assists and 177 power-play points with the team.
Edler also appeared in 82 career post-season contests with Vancouver and was an integral part of the Canucks’ run to the 2011 Stanley Cup final, putting up 11 points (2-9-11) across 25 games.
“I am humbled and honoured to officially end my career and retire as a member of the Vancouver Canucks,” Edler said in a release. “I consider myself lucky to have started my career with such an outstanding organization, in this amazing city, with the best fans in the NHL. Finishing my NHL career where it all began is something very special for myself and my family.”
Edler played two seasons for Los Angeles in 2021-22 and 2022-23. He did not play in the NHL last season.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2024.
The sixth-ranked Canadian women will face World Cup champion Spain in an international friendly next month.
Third-ranked Spain will host Canada on Oct. 25 at Estadio Francisco de la Hera in Almendralejo.
The game will be the first for the Canadian women since the Paris Olympics, where they lost to Germany in a quarterfinal penalty shootout after coach Bev Priestman was sent home and later suspended for a year by FIFA over her part in Canada’s drone-spying scandal.
In announcing the Spain friendly, Canada Soccer said more information on the interim women’s coaching staff for the October window will come later. Assistant coach Andy Spence took charge of the team in Priestman’s absence at the Olympics.
Spain finished fourth in Paris, beaten 1-0 by Germany in the bronze-medal match.
Canada is winless in three previous meetings (0-2-1) with Spain, most recently losing 1-0 at the Arnold Clark Cup in England in February 2022.
The teams played to a scoreless draw in May 2019 in Logroñés, Spain in a warm-up for the 2019 World Cup. Spain won 1-0 in March 2019 at the Algarve Cup in São João da Venda, Portugal.
Spain is a powerhouse in the women’s game these days.
It won the FIFA U-20 World Cup in 2022 and was runner-up in 2018. And it ousted Canada 2-1 in the round of 16 of the current U-20 tournament earlier this month in Colombia before falling 1-0 to Japan after extra time in the quarterfinal.
Spain won the FIFA U-17 World Cup in 2018 and 2022 and has finished on the podium on three other occasions.
FC Barcelona’s Aitana Bonmati (2023) and Alexia Putellas (2021 and ’22) have combined to win the last three Women’s Ballon d’Or awards.
And Barcelona has won three of the last four UEFA Women’s Champions League titles.
“We continue to strive to diversify our opponent pool while maintaining a high level of competition.” Daniel Michelucci, Canada Soccer’s director of national team operations, said in a statement. “We anticipate a thrilling encounter, showcasing two of the world’s top-ranked teams.”
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2024
TORONTO – The Toronto Maple Leafs have announced cookie brand Oreo as the team’s helmet sponsor for the upcoming NHL season.
The new helmet will debut Sunday when Toronto opens its 2024-25 pre-season against the Ottawa Senators at Scotiabank Arena.
The Oreo logo replaces Canadian restaurant chain Pizza Pizza, which was the Leafs’ helmet sponsor last season.
Previously, social media platform TikTok sponsored Toronto starting in the 2021-22 regular season when the league began allowing teams to sell advertising space on helmets.
The Oreo cookie consists of two chocolate biscuits around a white icing filling and is often dipped in milk.
Fittingly, the Leafs wear the Dairy Farmers of Ontario’s “Milk” logo on their jerseys.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2024.
