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NFL postpones Titans-Steelers game due to COVID-19 outbreak – Sportsnet.ca

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NASHVILLE — The Tennessee Titans have at least one more day to see if the team’s coronavirus outbreak is under control before their game with the Steelers is rescheduled for Monday or Tuesday.

Only one new positive test result came back Wednesday, a day after the Titans had three players and five team personnel test positive for COVID-19. More daily test results are upcoming.

The league announced the postponement from Sunday afternoon on Wednesday.

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The Titans hope to be allowed back inside their facility Saturday, though coach Mike Vrabel said that could happen before then or later. The Titans now are preparing to play as early as Monday. Vrabel said he’s confident the NFL will allow them some time to practice before the game.

“We’ve worked on short weeks before,” Vrabel said. “We’ve played three games in 13 days. I’m sure the other teams that we played before had a few extra days of practice. And so it’ll be important that the time that we do get to spend practicing, we take advantage of it.”

Outside linebackers coach Shane Bowen was the first to test positive, with the Titans learning Saturday of his results. He didn’t make the trip to Minnesota, where Tennessee won 31-30. On Tuesday, the Titans placed three players on the reserve/COVID-19 list, including key players defensive captain and lineman DaQuan Jones and long snapper Beau Brinkley.

Vrabel is not identifying the five personnel who also tested positive, saying only that he was not among that group. The Titans coach said some of those who tested positive are experiencing “flu-like symptoms” and anticipate they will feel better shortly.

The league’s infectious disease experts have been helping the Titans and the Vikings track down anyone in contact with those who tested positive. The Vikings had no positive test results Wednesday and were preparing to reopen their building Thursday with a game Sunday at Houston.

The Titans also have evaluated all of the protocols and how they’ve handled meetings and social distancing. Vrabel said he and general manager Jon Robinson already had taken steps Monday to severely limit who had access to the team’s headquarters this week before the NFL decision to close the building.

“We want to make sure that we’re doing everything we can to make the players safe and that this doesn’t happen again,” Vrabel said.

Now the Titans must prepare virtually until they can hit the practice field for a game against the Steelers pitting two of the NFL’s seven undefeated teams.

Vrabel said they held a team meeting virtually Wednesday morning and he showed the Titans video of Pittsburgh. Players had meetings with their position coaches — all through video conference calls.

With only a practice and a walk-through possible before kickoff, the Titans will be preparing virtually for the Steelers to make sure they’re all on the same page. Pittsburgh has a league-high 15 sacks, so paying attention and talking on those Zoom calls will be crucial.

Players with injuries still can receive treatment at the Titans’ facility, with visits to the training room staggered. Other Titans are home hoping no more positive results turn up and that they themselves don’t test positive even as they attempt to keep their family members safe.

Safety Kevin Byard said more positives remain a possibility with the virus sometimes showing up days after exposure. In the meantime, it’s up to individual players being professionals and finding a way to make up for missed practices.

“If it’s getting on a Peloton bike, just going around your neighbourhood, jogging around to making sure that you continue to try to get your blood going, get your blood flowing, do a little bit conditioning on your own, to make sure that when you actually get out there your muscles aren’t just super tight,” Byard said.

The Titans are working to bring in a new long snapper, a crucial position for a team that has won all three games inside the final two minutes on a field goal. That player will have to go through the NFL’s testing protocol first. Replacing Jones also won’t be easy, but defensive lineman Jeffery Simmons is off to a strong start.

For the Steelers, the only change is the schedule pushes back a day or two. They host the Eagles on Oct. 11 while the Titans are scheduled to host Buffalo.

“We’re going to trust the medical experts,” Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said. “If they deem it safe for us to proceed, we’re going to go down there with the intention of playing and playing to win.”

Cleveland Browns centre JC Tretter, the president of the players’ union, said the outbreak was a reminder that everyone must be more vigilant despite low testing numbers across the league.

“It’s easy to fall into a sense of ease or relax on some of the protocols,” he said Wednesday. “But the protocols are what’s keeping us going, making sure that we’re making the right decisions. ? We have been going really smoothly for a long time and now there was some expectation that this was eventually going to happen. It’s tough to keep the virus completely out.”

And the Titans are the NFL’s first team tasked with finding a way to adapt and play through the league’s first COVID-19 outbreak.

“It’s not ideal, but we have to find a way,” quarterbak Ryan Tannehill said. “We have to be able to overcome adversity. It’s just a different type of adversity. We’ve done it throughout this season so far a few weeks in and showed our mental strength that we can find a way to win games, and this is just another challenge along that road.”

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Sault duo celebrates historic perfect season for university hockey team – SooToday

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With some help from a pair of Sault products, the University of New Brunswick Reds men’s hockey team capped off a historic perfect season over the weekend with a national championship.

For Cole MacKay and Camaryn Baber, a pair of childhood friends from the Sault who joined UNB’s team last season, it’s their second consecutive national championship.

UNB capped off the USPORTS national championship win on Sunday with a 4-0 win over UQTR.

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In Sunday’s win, MacKay had four shots on goal for the Reds while Baber was busy in the faceoff circle, taking 19 draws and winning eight of them.

UNB went 3-0 in the national championship tournament.

The Reds advanced to Sunday’s final by winning their semi-final game on Saturday by a 7-0 margin over Toronto Metropolitan. Baber had a goal in the win while MacKay had seven shots on goal.

UNB opened the tournament on Thursday with a 4-0 win over the Brock Badgers in quarterfinal play.

UNB won the Atlantic University Sport playoff title by running the table, first sweeping Saint Mary’s in a best-of-five semi-final series and then sweeping Moncton in a best-of-three championship series.

The Reds went 30-0 in regular season play and 38 straight including the playoffs and national championship tournament. The school’s winning streak dates back to last season’s AUS championship series when the team dropped a double-overtime decision in game two against Moncton.

UNB’s winning streak currently stands at 42 games. The team also won five exhibition games this season.

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Sean Martin takes closer look at what makes Scottie Scheffler's PLAYERS win so special – PGA TOUR – PGA TOUR

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Four of the five hardest par 4s on Sunday were on the back nine (Nos. 14, 10, 18 and 15, in order of difficulty). But the back nine also had three of Sunday’s four easiest holes (Nos. 11, 16 and 12, in order of ease). At last year’s PLAYERS, Scottie pulled five ahead by making five straight birdies on Nos. 8-12. He birdied four of those holes (Nos. 8-9, 11-12) on Sunday to tie the lead. It was almost six in a row. He missed a 12-footer for birdie on 10 and a 5-footer on 13.

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Wayne Simmonds Announces His Retirement from the National Hockey League | Philadelphia Flyers – NHL.com

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Former Philadelphia Flyer Wayne Simmonds today announced his retirement from the National Hockey League (NHL). In honor of his retirement, the Philadelphia Flyers will sign Simmonds to a one-day contract and honor his career on Saturday, April 13 when the Flyers host the New Jersey Devils at Wells Fargo Center (5 p.m. ET).

“It’s hard to describe my emotions on a day like this, but one of my very first thoughts as I look back is my life in Philadelphia and playing for the Flyers,” said Simmonds. “Taking the ice in a Flyers sweater is a special feeling and it’s one that I’m truly proud of. The history of this franchise and standard of being a Flyer that was set is unique and one that I hold in the highest regard. Perhaps the biggest reason for that is the way the fans embrace this team. It was a thrill to play for you all these years, and you mean so much to me. I’d like to thank Dan Hilferty, Keith Jones and Danny Briere for making this a special day and the fans for all their support throughout the years for me and my family.”

“I want to congratulate Wayne on an exceptional career. He was as tough and fierce of a competitor as they come. No one could ever question his commitment to his team and doing whatever it took to win, whether it was scoring goals, blocking shots, sticking up for a teammate or teaching them how to be a true professional on and off the ice,” said Chairman & CEO of Comcast Spectacor Dan Hilferty. “If there was anything that stood out more than Wayne’s dedication on the ice, it was his passion for giving back to the community. Wayne’s impact on both this city and his hometown of Scarborough through his charitable work is immeasurable and continues to be felt to this day. Simply put, Wayne Simmonds was born to be a Philadelphia Flyer and I am very proud to welcome him back.”

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“Wayne has had a tremendous career, on and off the ice, and to celebrate him and his accomplishments with the Philadelphia organization and fans on April 13 is not only fitting, but right,” said Flyers President of Hockey Operations Keith Jones. “Wayne is a special member of the Flyers family and an icon for our surrounding Philadelphia communities. It was an honor to cover his career and watch him grow into the person that he is today. Congratulations to him and his family on his well-deserved retirement from the NHL.”

“It is a privilege to congratulate Wayne on his retirement from the NHL and I look forward to celebrating his career on April 13 with our great fans,” said Flyers General Manager Daniel Briere. “He was an excellent teammate, a leader in the locker room and a class act for the Philadelphia community. He had such passion for this city and team that it was an honor to witness it all and play alongside him. I wish him all the happiness and success to him and his family as he embarks on this new chapter.”

Simmonds, 35 (8/26/88), skated in eight of his 15 NHL seasons with the Philadelphia Flyers (2011-19). The native of Scarborough, Ontario, collected 378 points (203-175=378), 91 power-play goals, 34 game-winning goals and 786 penalty minutes in 584 games. He ranks second in franchise history in hits (1,108), T-3rd in game-deciding goals (4), sixth in shootout goals (7), seventh in PPG, T-13th in GWG and 14th in goals. The right-shot winger set career highs in scoring twice with 60 points each during the 2013-14 and 2015-16 campaigns. He led the Flyers during the 2015-16 season with a career-high 32 goals and led the team and ranked T-6th in the NHL in PPG (13) that season. Simmonds also collected 15 playoff points (5-10=15) in 30 contests with the Flyers.

Simmonds was acquired by Philadelphia on June 23, 2011 from Los Angeles along with Brayden Schenn and a second-round pick (DAL, 61st overall – Devin Shore) in the 2012 NHL Draft in exchange for Mike Richards and Rob Bordson. Simmonds represented the Flyers at the 2017 NHL All-Star Game and was named the All-Star Game MVP. He won the 2011-12 Gene Hart Memorial Award, 2015-16 Yanick Dupre Class Guy Memorial Award and the 2016-17 Bobby Clarke Trophy and Toyota Cup.

Simmonds was a finalist for the 2017-18 Mark Messier NHL Leadership Award and won the award in 2018-19 with Philadelphia and Nashville. The award is presented annually to the player who exemplifies great leadership qualities to his team, on and off the ice, during the regular season and who plays a leading role in his community growing the game of hockey. During his tenure with the Flyers, Simmonds hosted “Wayne’s Warriors,” an in-game initiative in which he purchased a full season suite and donated every game to local military members. He served as a board member of the Ed Snider Youth Hockey Foundation and was active with Make-A-Wish Foundation and March of Dimes. Throughout the course of his NHL career, Simmonds also founded “Wayne’s Road Hockey Warriors” which was a summer ball hockey tournament hosted in his hometown of Scarborough that allowed children to experience the game who otherwise would not be able to do so due to a lack of resources.

Simmonds registered 526 career points (263-263=526) in 1,037 NHL regular season games in 15 seasons with Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Nashville, New Jersey, Buffalo and Toronto (2008-23). He recorded 22 playoff points (8-14=22) in 53 career Stanley Cup Playoff contests with the Kings, Flyers, Predators and Maple Leafs. He skated in his 1,000th NHL regular season game on March 5, 2022 with Toronto and was originally selected by Los Angeles in the second round (61st overall) of the 2007 NHL Draft.

Internationally, Simmonds represented Canada at the 2008 IIHF World Junior Championship (gold) and at the 2013 and 2017 (silver) IIHF World Championships.

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