Sports

Leafs fan meets Matthews, Marner in Tampa Bay

Published

2 years ago

April 13, 2023

An eight-year-old boy from Paris, Ont. got to meet his two “heroes” from the Toronto Maple Leafs for his birthday after a picture of him and his sign went viral online.

Richard Hodgkinson took his son Blake on a family vacation to Tampa Bay in celebration of his birthday, which included going to a Leafs’ game – his second ever.

Hodgkinson told CTV News Toronto on Wednesday that he and his family have been long-time fans of the Toronto franchise.

“We’ve all been Leafs’ fans forever. Certainly, since he was born, he’s always watched the Leafs,” Hodgkinson said.

“When he really started to understand what it was, you know, obviously [Mitch] Marner and [Auston] Matthews are the two big names for Toronto and quickly became his favourites.”

Ahead of the game, Hodgkinson said Blake wanted to make a sign for it – long before knowing his two favourite players weren’t playing Tuesday night’s game against the Lightning.

“I came from Toronto to see my heroes,” the front of the sign read, with Marner’s and Matthews’ jersey numbers printed.

“On the back, I believe it said, ‘Hey Auston, It’s my birthday. Can I have a stick?’ Or something to that effect,” Hodgkinson recalled.

“He was disappointed for sure when he found out that they weren’t playing, but he was still really excited to watch anyway.”

At the Tampa Bay Lightning and Toronto Maple Leafs game on April 11. (Richard Hodgkinson)

Long-time TSN hockey commentator, Gord Miller, shared a photo of Blake with his sign on Twitter, which has been viewed over 700,000 times and has over 1,250 likes. An hour later, he followed up, noting the Leafs were working to find “this young fan.”

“Blake and I were in the concession getting snacks after the period, and Steve Keogh from the Leafs came and recognized Blake,” Hodgkinson said. “Then he gave him a hat and a puck and said, ‘Would you like to meet Auston and Mitch after the game?’ And Blake, of course, was grinning through the roof.”

After the game was over – which the Leafs won 4-3 – Blake got to head down and meet his “heroes” nearby the locker room.

In the video shared by the franchise on social media, the two players shook Blake’s hand, asked how everyone was doing, before looking at Blake’s handiwork with the sign he made.

“Well, we got some Sharpies. Do you want us to sign this for you?” Marner could be heard asking in the video.

Marner and Matthews not only signed Blake’s poster, but also signed a hockey stick, puck, hat, and his Marner t-shirt.

“He slept with the stick last night,” Hodgkinson said.

“He was speechless, and to a large extent, he still is … He’s been watching the video that was circulated about it. I don’t think yesterday he truly understood what was happening, and it’s starting to sink in on him this morning.”

Hodgkinson said Blake is an avid hockey player who hopes to one day make an AAA Hockey team – and after, the NHL.

“He loves to score goals, and he often tries to mimic Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner.”

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Sports

Sports betting roundup: NFL and college football were all about the favourites

Published

21 hours ago

November 4, 2024

Anne Joseph

The past weekend of football was all about the favourites.

The favoured teams went 13-1 straight up and 10-4 against the spread in the NFL. In college football, the three most teams bet at the BetMGM Sportsbook in terms of number of bets and money all won and covered. All three were favourites.

Trends of the Week

The three most bet college teams that won and covered on Saturday were Ohio State (-3.5) vs. Penn State, Indiana (-7.5) at Michigan State and Oregon (-14.5) at Michigan. Penn State has now lost seven straight home games as underdogs. The Nittany Lions were up 10-0 in the first quarter and were 3.5-point favourites at the time. The Buckeyes won 17-10.

In the NFL, the three most bet teams in terms of number of bets and money were the Washington Commanders (-4) at the New York Giants, the Detroit Lions (-2.5) at the Green Bay Packers and the Buffalo Bills (-6) vs. the Miami Dolphins. All three teams won, but only two of the three covered the spread as Buffalo beat Miami 30-27.

When it came to the players with the most bets to score a touchdown on Sunday, only two of the five reached the end zone — Chase Brown (-125) and Taysom Hill (+185). David Montgomery (-140), Brian Robinson Jr. (+110) and AJ Barner (+500) did not score.

Upsets of the Week

The biggest upset in the NFL was the Carolina Panthers coming from behind to beat the New Orleans Saints 23-22. New Orleans closed as a 7-point favourite and took in 76% of the bets and 79% of the money in against-the-spread betting. The Saints fired head coach Dennis Allen following the loss. They have now lost seven straight games after starting the year 2-0.

Arguably the biggest upset in college football was South Carolina beating No. 10 Texas A&M 44-20 at home. Texas A&M closed as a 2.5-point favourite and took in 59% of the bets and 58% of the money.

Coming up

Right after the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the New York Yankees to win the World Series, odds for the 2025 World Series were released.

The Dodgers have the best odds at +400, while the Atlanta Braves and Yankees are next at +800.

The Baltimore Orioles and Philadelphia Phillies round out the top five, both at +1100.

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This column was provided to The Associated Press by BetMGM online sportsbook.

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AP sports:

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Sports

Longtime rivals Ovechkin, Crosby join Necas as NHL’s three stars of the week

Published

21 hours ago

November 4, 2024

Anne Joseph

NEW YORK – Washington Capitals left-wing Alex Ovechkin, Carolina Hurricanes centre Martin Necas and Pittsburgh Penguins centre Sidney Crosby have been named the NHL’s three stars of the week.

Ovechkin had a league-leading five goals and nine points in four games.

The 39-year-old Capitals captain has 14 points in 11 games this season, and his 860 career goals are just 34 shy of Wayne Gretzky’s record.

Necas shared the league lead with nine points (three goals, six assists) in three games.

Crosby factored on seven of the Penguins’ eight total goals scoring four goals and adding three assists in three appearances. The 37-year-old Penguins captain leads his team with 14 points (five goals, nine assists) in 13 games this season.

Crosby and Ovechkin, longtime rivals since entering the league together in 2005-06, will meet for the 70th time in the regular season and 95th time overall when Pittsburgh visits Washington on Friday.

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

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Sports

Oliveira, Mitchell named as finalists for CFL outstanding player award

Published

5 days ago

October 31, 2024

Anne Joseph

TORONTO – Running back Brady Oliveira of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and Hamilton Tiger-Cats quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell are the finalists for the CFL’s outstanding player award.

Oliveira led the CFL in rushing this season with 1,353 yards while Mitchell was the league leader in passing yards (5,451) and touchdowns (32).

Oliveira is also the West Division finalist for the CFL’s top Canadian award, the second straight year he’s been nominated for both.

Oliveira was the CFL’s outstanding Canadian in 2023 and the runner-up to Toronto Argonauts quarterback Chad Kelly for outstanding player.

Defensive lineman Isaac Adeyemi-Berglund of the Montreal Alouettes is the East Division’s top Canadian nominee.

Voting for the awards is conducted by the Football Reporters of Canada and the nine CFL head coaches.

The other award finalists include: defensive back Rolan Milligan Jr. of the Saskatchewan Roughriders and Montreal linebacker Tyrice Beverette (outstanding defensive player); Saskatchewan’s Logan Ferland and Toronto’s Ryan Hunter (outstanding lineman); B.C. Lions kicker Sean Whyte and Toronto returner Janarion Grant (special teams); and Edmonton Elks linebacker Nick Anderson and Hamilton receiver Shemar Bridges (outstanding rookie).

The coach of the year finalists are Saskatchewan’s Corey Mace and Montreal’s Jason Maas.

The CFL will honour its top individual performers Nov. 14 in Vancouver.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 31.

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