TORONTO — When Justin Bieber came calling with a favour, three Toronto Maple Leafs‘ stars were more than happy to answer.
That’s how Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner and Tyson Barrie found themselves taking part in a Boxing Day skate at 95-year-old William Allman Memorial Arena in Stratford, Ont., on Thursday afternoon. Bieber was back in his hometown for the holidays and invited the Leafs to join his childhood buddies for a shinny game at the home of the Jr. B Stratford Warriors.
“We had nothing else going on and that’s something you don’t want to miss,” Marner said Friday. “Obviously, we jumped at the excitement of that and we had all three of us go down.
“It was a lot of fun and it was cool meeting all of his friends as well.”
Naturally, their presence created a small stir in the community of 30,000 people about two hours west of Toronto. The Leafs obliged requests for selfies before and after taking the ice with the pop star and his buddies.
Bieber is a big Leafs fan and sat directly behind the home bench wearing a Matthews sweater for the Oct. 25 game at Scotiabank Arena. Matthews, meanwhile, loves fashion and routinely wears items from Bieber’s Drew House clothing line.
They’ve struck up a friendship in recent months and that’s where the planning started to happen for Thursday’s shinny session.
“It was great. It was a lot of fun,” said Matthews. “I’ve never been in that part of Ontario, so it was kind of cool to see where he grew up and meet a lot of buddies that he grew up with and everything.
“It was definitely a pretty fun experience for all of us.”
The players were split into two teams and they played 4-on-4 — Bieber had both Matthews and Marner on his side, while Barrie was on the other — which gave the Leafs players a chance to stretch their legs during the three-day holiday break.
Bieber’s team won, but the game wasn’t overly competitive.
“Those guys, I think Christmas holidays, they were all just coming from work, drinking beers and having fun,” said Barrie.
As for Bieber himself, the entertainer drew positive reviews. He skates often and participated in the celebrity game during the 2017 NHL all-star weekend in Los Angeles — memorably taking a hit from Chris Pronger.
“He’s actually better than I thought he was,” said Marner. “I saw videos of when he skated here (at Scotiabank Arena) the first time and you don’t really see too much, but he’s got really good hands and he’s got a pretty good shot on him.
“I think he surprised me and Matts quite a bit, and Tyson.”
The Leafs certainly seemed to enjoy their visit to Stratford. Barrie had never met Bieber before and came away impressed.
“He was a really nice guy and it’s a cool thing what he does for all of his buddies there,” said Barrie. “It was a cool day.”
TORONTO – Reigning PWHL MVP and scoring champ Natalie Spooner will miss the start of the regular season for the Toronto Sceptres, general manager Gina Kingsbury announced Tuesday on the first day of training camp.
The 33-year-old Spooner had knee surgery on her left anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) after she was checked into the boards by Minnesota’s Grace Zumwinkle in Game 3 of their best-of-five semifinal series on May 13.
She had a goal and an assist in three playoff games but did not finish the series. Toronto was up 2-1 in the semifinal at that time and eventually fell 3-2 in the series.
Spooner led the PWHL with 27 points in 24 games. Her 20 goals, including five game-winners, were nine more than the closest skater.
Kingsbury said there is no timeline, as the team wants the Toronto native at 100 per cent, but added that “she is doing really well” in her recovery.
The Sceptres open the PWHL season on Nov. 30 when they host the Boston Fleet.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 12, 2024.
LAHORE, Pakistan (AP) — A top official of the Pakistan Cricket Board declined Friday to confirm media reports that India has decided against playing any games in host Pakistan during next year’s Champions Trophy.
“My view is if there’s any problems, they (India) should tell us in writing,” PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi told reporters in Lahore. “I’ll share that with the media as well as with the government as soon as I get such a letter.”
Indian media reported Friday that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has communicated its concerns to all the Champions Trophy stakeholders, including the PCB, over the Feb. 19-March 9 tournament and would not play in arch-rival Pakistan.
The Times of India said that “Dubai is a strong candidate to host the fixtures involving the Men in Blue” for the 50-over tournament.
Such a solution would see Pakistan having to travel to a neutral venue to play India in a group match, with another potential meeting later in the tournament if both teams advanced from their group. The final is scheduled for March 9 in Pakistan with the specific venue not yet decided.
“Our stance is clear,” Naqvi said. “They need to give us in writing any objections they may have. Until now, no discussion of the hybrid model has happened, nor are we prepared to accept one.”
Political tensions have stopped bilateral cricket between the two nations since 2008 and they have competed in only multi-nation tournaments, including ICC World Cups.
“Cricket should be free of politics,” Naqvi said. “Any sport should not be entangled with politics. Our preparations for the Champions Trophy will continue unabated, and this will be a successful event.”
The PCB has already spent millions of dollars on the upgrade of stadiums in Karachi, Lahore and Rawalpindi which are due to host 15 Champions Trophy games. Naqvi hoped all the three stadiums will be ready over the next two months.
“Almost every country wants the Champions Trophy to be played here (in Pakistan),” Naqvi said. “I don’t think anyone should make this a political matter, and I don’t expect they will. I expect the tournament will be held at the home of the official hosts.”
Eight countries – Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, England, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand and Afghanistan – are due to compete in the tournament, the schedule of which is yet to be announced by the International Cricket Council.
“Normally the ICC announces the schedule of any major tournament 100 days before the event, and I hope they will announce it very soon,” Naqvi said.
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – Ottawa‘s Gabriela Dabrowski and Erin Routliffe of New Zealand are through to the doubles final at the WTA Finals after a 7-6 (7), 6-1 victory over Nicole Melichar-Martinez of the United States and Australia’s Ellen Perez in semifinal action Friday.
Dabrowski and Routliffe won a hard-fought first set against serve when Routliffe’s quick reaction at the net to defend a Perez shot gave the duo set point, causing Perez to throw down her racket in frustration.
The second seeds then cruised through the second set, winning match point on serve when Melichar-Martinez couldn’t handle Routliffe’s shot.
The showdown was a rematch of last year’s semifinal, which Melichar-Martinez and Perez won in a super tiebreak.
Dabrowski and Routliffe will face the winner of a match between Katerina Siniakova and Taylor Townsend, and Hao-Ching Chan and Veronika Kudermetova in the final on Saturday.
Dabrowski is aiming to become the first Canadian to win a WTA Finals title.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.
