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Morning Coffee: Maple Leafs arrive atop NHL standings – TSN

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It wasn’t long after the TSN EDGE officially launched that our TSN Hockey analyst Mike Johnson was first referred to as “Mystic Mike.”

On Tuesday night, he reminded us all how he earned that nickname.

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Auston Matthews to record over 4.5 shots on goal – CHECK. Toronto Maple Leafs to win in regulation – CHECK. Tampa Bay Lightning to win in regulation – CHECK.

Mystic Mike went a perfect 3-0 with the picks that he revealed on the Leafs on TSN broadcast before puck drop.  

Shout out to everyone who took advantage and tailed him on another winning night.

If only it was always that easy for the rest of us!

Here’s the TSN EDGE Morning Coffee for Wednesday, Dec. 8, 2021.

Maple Leafs arrive atop NHL standings

The Maple Leafs (-315) delivered as the biggest favourite on Tuesday night’s NHL board.

Matthews recorded a goal and an assist as Toronto jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first period. 

He added another goal, his 17th of the season, late in the second in a 5-4 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Matthews is up to 17 goals in 24 games this season. He’s four back of Leon Draisaitl for the NHL lead.

As of this morning, Draisaitl remains the favourite to win the Rocket Richard Trophy at +150. Alex Ovechkin, who has 20 goals in 26 games, is the second choice at +350. Matthews is the third choice to win the Rocket at +500.

With the win, the Maple Leafs improved to 11-2-1 over their past 14 games to climb into a tie with the Florida Panthers and Washington Capitals for first place in the NHL standings. 

As of this morning, Toronto is the third choice to win the Presidents’ Trophy at +600, behind only Florida (+420) and the Colorado Avalanche (+550).

The Maple Leafs are also the third choice to win the Eastern Conference at +500, behind the Panthers and Tampa Bay Lightning, which are currently co-favourites to win the East at +470.

Toronto is +210 to win the Atlantic Division. Only Florida (+140) has shorter odds.

Next up for the Maple Leafs is a date with the defending Stanley Cup champion Lightning on Thursday night.

Meanwhile, Toronto’s win was the lone bright spot for Canadian NHL teams on Tuesday night, as the other five Canadian teams in action all lost. 

Tomas Hertl recorded a hat trick as the San Jose (+125) erased a 3-1 deficit to beat the Calgary Flames 5-3.

The Minnesota Wild (+105) beat the Edmonton Oilers 4-1 for their seventh straight win.

The Lightning (-245) rallied with two goals in the third period to beat the Montreal Canadiens 3-2 in their first meeting since the Stanley Cup Final.

NHL favourites went 7-3 on Tuesday night. The over also went 7-3.

A perfect sweep for NBA favourites

NBA favourites went 3-0 on Wednesday night.

LeBron James went for 30 points, five assists and four rebounds as the Los Angeles Lakers (-3) beat the Boston Celtics 117-102 on Tuesday night.

The Lakers have won three of four, with games against the Memphis Grizzlies and Oklahoma City Thunder coming up next. 

RJ Barrett scored a game-high 32 points to lead the New York Knicks (-1) to a 121-109 win over the San Antonio Spurs.

Meanwhile, Kevin Durant scored 24 points, James Harden had 23 points, and the Brooklyn Nets (-1.5) beat the Dallas Mavericks 102-99.

Countdown to the 108th Grey Cup continues

The countdown to the Grey Cup continues with some interesting line movement.

The Winnipeg Blue Bombers opened as a 4.5-point favourite for Sunday’s championship game.

On Tuesday, we saw that number drop as low as -1.5 at one spot, with some varying movement across the board.

As of this morning, the Blue Bombers are a consensus 3.5-point favourite, with the total set at 44.5.

Our coverage of the 108th Grey Cup will continue throughout the week with the season finale of The Prop Masters, the CFL Spotlight and more right here at TSN EDGE.

Perhaps we will test Mystic Mike’s range and ask for his Grey Cup prediction.

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Vasilevskiy stops 23 as surging Lightning beat Bruins – Sportsnet.ca

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Shane Pinto has a goal, three assists as the Senators roll over the Sabres – Sportsnet.ca

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Here’s what we know about the allegations against Shohei Ohtani’s interpreter, Ippei Mizuhara

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LOS ANGELES –

Only a week has passed since the Los Angeles Dodgers abruptly fired Ippei Mizuhara, the interpreter and constant companion of their new $700 million slugger, Shohei Ohtani.

But the biggest story of baseball’s spring is still murky — and shocking — as the regular season begins in earnest Thursday.

The scandal encompasses gambling, alleged theft, extensive deceit and the breakup of an enduring partnership between the majors’ biggest star and his right-hand man. Investigations are underway by the IRS and Major League Baseball, and Ohtani publicly laid out a version of events Monday that placed the responsibility entirely on Mizuhara.

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Here are the basics as Ohtani and the Dodgers prepare for their home opener against St. Louis on Thursday:

Why was Ippei Mizuhara fired by the Dodgers?

Ohtani claims his close friend repeatedly took money from his accounts to fund his illegal sports gambling habit. Ohtani also says he was completely unaware of the “massive theft,” as his lawyers termed it, until Mizuhara confessed to him and the Dodgers last week in South Korea, where the team opened its regular season against the San Diego Padres.

Mizuhara has given more than one version of his path to this trouble, which was catalyzed by the IRS’ investigation of Mathew Bowyer, an alleged illegal bookmaker. Mizuhara has consistently said he has a gambling addiction, and he abused his close friendship with the Dodgers superstar to feed it.

Did Shohei Ohtani ever bet on sports?

That’s the biggest question to be answered in Major League Baseball’s investigation, and the two-time AL MVP emphatically says he has never gambled on sports or asked anybody to bet on sports for him.

Further, Ohtani said Monday he has never knowingly paid a bookie to cover somebody else’s bets. Mizuhara also said Ohtani does not bet, and Bowyer’s attorney said the same.

Mizuhara told ESPN on March 19 that Ohtani paid his gambling debts at the interpreter’s request, saying the bets were on international soccer, the NBA, the NFL and college football. If that were true, Ohtani could face trouble even if he didn’t make the bets himself — but ESPN said Mizuhara dramatically changed his story the following day, claiming Ohtani had no knowledge of the gambling debts and had not transferred any money to bookmakers.

MLB rules prohibit players and team employees from wagering — even legally — on baseball. They also ban betting on other sports with illegal or offshore bookmakers.

What’s next for Ohtani?

Ohtani has played in every Dodgers game since the story broke, and he is expected to be their designated hitter in most regular-season games this season while baseball’s investigation continues.

Ohtani says his legal team has alerted authorities to the theft by Mizuhara, although his team has repeatedly declined to say which authorities have been told, according to ESPN.

Ohtani’s new interpreter is Will Ireton, a longtime Dodgers employee and fluent Japanese speaker who has filled several jobs with the team in everything from game preparation and analytics to recruiting free-agent pitches. But Ireton won’t be Ohtani’s constant companion, and manager Dave Roberts said Tuesday he’s optimistic that Ohtani will become closer to his teammates without the “buffer” provided for years by Mizuhara.

What don’t we know?

MLB’s investigation of Ohtani’s role in the events could last weeks or months, and it’s unlikely to be publicized until it’s complete. No one outside of Ohtani’s inner circle knows what it will find or how serious any repercussions could be, and nobody outside the circle is making informed speculation about the process.

One major question looms: How did Mizuhara have enough access to Ohtani’s bank accounts to get the alleged millions without Ohtani knowing? Is the slugger overly trusting, or is he wildly negligent in managing his vast fortune, which includes years of lavish endorsement deals in addition to his baseball salaries? Why didn’t the team around him, including his agent, do more to prevent the possibility of the theft he claims?

Finally, where is Mizuhara? Anybody who knows isn’t saying. He was fired in South Korea and apparently didn’t travel home with the Dodgers. Japanese media have visited his home in Southern California to look for him. Although he was born in Japan, Mizuhara’s life is in the U.S. — but his life will never be the same.

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