Brad Treliving will be paying close attention to the NFL draft.
And not because he’s curious to see if Joe Burrow does indeed go No. 1 to the Cincinnati Bengals or where fellow quarterback Tua Tagovailoa winds up.
The general manager of the Calgary Flames is planning to focus on how his football counterparts deal with the realities of their world during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The NFL closed all 32 of its team facilities in March and cancelled the live, in-person draft spectacle originally scheduled for Las Vegas. Executives will instead submit picks remotely from their homes, away from the so-called “war rooms” where decisions are usually made alongside scouts and other members of the front office.
The selections for Thursday’s first round will still be announced to a television audience by commissioner Roger Goodell, but he’s going to be holed up at his residence outside New York City.
“It’s going to be really interesting,” Treliving said. “I know the NHL is watching what they’re doing closely. We may be following their lead.”
The NHL draft was set to be held June 26-27 at the Bell Centre in Montreal before the novel coronavirus brought society to a screeching halt last month.
Forced to suspend its season, the league last month postponed the draft and its yearly combine, which was scheduled for early June in Buffalo, N.Y. The draft lottery was also postponed.
With so much hanging on the advice and direction of medical experts — including whether or not the 2019-20 campaign can be completed — when and how the NHL draft is eventually held remains a fluid situation, but it’s safe to assume things will be scaled back.
It could end up like the NFL with proceedings taking place remotely or, if social distancing guidelines are relaxed, might look similar to the 2005 NHL draft that was moved to an Ottawa hotel ballroom in late July following the lockout that wiped out the previous season.
Treliving believes given the current situation, it could be hard to get teams to physically gather in one place.
“Certainly our draft is going to be remote, that would be safe to say,” he said. “For sure I’m going to be watching (the NFL draft) and doing a lot of homework on not only that, but different ideas of how we could potentially do our draft.”
The NFL held a mock draft Monday in hopes of ironing out any technical issues. Officially, only a few minor hiccups arose, but some anonymous sources told The Associated Press there were glitches at the outset when the Bengals were making the first selection.
“Certainly it has been interesting,” Winnipeg Jets GM Kevin Cheveldayoff said of the NFL’s preparations. “We are living in a different time here right now. We’ve had lots of different video sessions internally, getting together with scouts over the different platforms that are available.”
Montreal Canadiens assistant GM Trevor Timmins, who oversees his club’s amateur scouting department, said NHL teams and fans should be able to glean plenty of information from how things play out for football.
“We can learn a lot from that — what works, what doesn’t work,” he said. “I’ve been in contact with my NFL contacts discussing how they are preparing with the limitations.”
The NFL combine had already taken place by the time the pandemic shut down much of North American society, but that doesn’t mean teams haven’t had issues gathering information.
“A lot of them do FaceTime interviews with draft prospects,” Timmins said. “They do video conferencing with their staff, they do video conferencing with players.
“We should all pay attention.”
A feature of NHL drafts has been television cameras zeroing in on rival GMs chatting on the arena floor or management groups huddling in deep discussion.
So what would an remote format do to any potential trades?
“A lot of the work on the trades that happen on draft day is done in the weeks and days and hours prior to the draft,” Ottawa Senators general manager Pierre Dorion said. “Things do happen quickly on the floor when it comes to the switch of picks, but we’re always on the phone and we can do the same remotely.”
Columbus Blue Jackets general manager Jarmo Kekalainen said because technology is already so ingrained in how teams do business — and even more so in the current climate of self-isolation and social distancing — a remote draft shouldn’t be a huge leap.
“I’m sure I’ll keep an eye on (the NFL draft), but I don’t think it’s going to change much,” he said. “At the draft, we’re around the table, everybody’s on their computer, we’ve got the direct line to the central registry system.
“We make our pick on the computer and away it goes.”
But even though video conference calls have become more common in the current coronavirus climate, Cheveldayoff said given the circumstances, NHL GMs won’t be alone in monitoring the NFL’s unique, technology-dependent draft.
“There’s lots of interesting dynamics,” he said. “You’ll probably see a lot of non-football fans tuning in.”
-With files from Donna Spencer
This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 22, 2020.
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.
