TSN SportsCentre Reporter Mark Masters reports on the Toronto Maple Leafs, who practised at Ford Performance Centre on Monday ahead of Tuesday’s game against the Penguins in Pittsburgh.
Jake Muzzin is out indefinitely with a cervical spine injury. He will be re-evaluated in late February. It’s unclear if the veteran defenceman will be able to return to the Leafs lineup.
“It is not something you want to really mess around with,” general manager Kyle Dubas said. “Unless he is 100 per cent sure that this recovery time is going to allow it to settle and not be an issue, we have to do what is right for his long-term health. He is a father of two young children and a husband. We have to make sure we are doing right by him. As important as he is to us as a player, his health is paramount.”
“I heard about it a lot earlier than you guys, obviously,” said winger Mitch Marner, who considers Muzzin among his closest friends on the team. “When you get news like that it’s pretty emotional. It was just me and him in the room when he told me and it’s a sad thing.”
Muzzin, who will turn 34 in February, has been sidelined since colliding with Arizona Coyotes forward Clayton Keller in Toronto’s fourth game of the season on Oct. 17.
Dubas pointed out this isn’t the first injury like this for Muzzin, who was stretchered off the ice following an awkward collision near the end of Game 2 of the 2020 bubble best-of-five playoff qualifying series against the Columbus Blue Jackets.
Muzzin will continue to be around the group. He’s working out in the gym and providing teammates with advice and encouragement.
“We think, because of his experience not just as a member of our team here but his experience previously winning in L.A., he can still bring a lot to our team,” said Dubas. “We are fortunate to have him and have him around.”
“He’s been awesome around the rink still,” said Marner. “He’s still bringing that positivity regardless of the news that he’s getting.”
Muzzin will go back to Los Angeles to meet with a specialist in February. It’s only at that time that the Leafs will know for sure if Muzzin is able to return.
“If we had any experience with this thing, I would stand up and give some semblance of a clear answer,” said Dubas. “Because of the nature of the injury and because we really don’t have a lot of experience with this type of injury — we are more relying on other sports that don’t replicate hockey exactly — it is hard to predict.”
In the mean time, Dubas is looking to see whether young defencemen Rasmus Sandin, 22, and Timothy Liljegren, 23, can handle more.
“Step two will be identifying — even if they elevate themselves — if it is going to be enough to help us really accomplish what we want to accomplish, and then we will evaluate the trade market and go from there,” Dubas continued. “We are not in any real hurry. We want to see what these guys bring.”
Dubas points out that Mark Giordano will help fill the leadership void. Head coach Sheldon Keefe recently revealed the team is urging the 39-year-old, who was acquired at the trade deadline last year, to speak up more.
“We now have Gio, who adds that kind of veteran stability,” Dubas said.
The trade deadline is March 3.
“As we go through the year, we will be really closely evaluating how it goes,” Dubas promised.
ContentId(1.1877933): Leafs D Muzzin out until at least February; Brodie also on IR
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T.J. Brodie will be out at least two weeks with an oblique injury. Where will the Leafs miss the defenceman most?
“It is the stability that he brings not just in how he plays but also in how he makes others better around him,” said Keefe, who dubbed the 32-year-old “Mr. Consistent” last year. “That is the biggest piece for sure.”
Brodie leads the Leafs in even-strength minutes (18:11 per game) and is tied with Justin Holl for the most short-handed minutes (3:07 per game).
“You can always depend on him defensively,” Marner noted. “He’s always in the right spot. He’s always making the right plays. He’s definitely a big piece.”
On Saturday, Brodie missed his first game since signing with the Leafs.
“I was really happy with how we managed it the other night,” Keefe said. “Jordie Benn came in and played his first game for us, we were on a back-to-back, and we had to kill some penalties late in the game with the game on the line. It was really encouraging to see how the guys responded to that. We are obviously going to need more of it.”
Benn moved up to play with Morgan Rielly while Giordano ended up with Holl, who had been playing with Brodie. Sandin and Liljegren linked up on the third pair.
ContentId(1.1878108): Leafs’ Brodie expected to miss a couple weeks with oblique injury
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Benn actually scored the winning goal against the Vancouver Canucks on Saturday.
“That was awesome,” said Auston Matthews with a big smile. “I wasn’t expecting a d-man to be in the paint there.”
“The puck just started coming up the wall,” Benn explained. “I saw Mo start sliding so I wanted to slide in and just so happened I ended up in front of the net and popped’er in.”
It was Benn’s first goal since Jan. 24 and led to an exuberant celebration.
“It doesn’t happen too often so I didn’t really know what to do,” the ex-Canuck admitted. “But, thank God Matty came and I was like, all right, here’s a hug.”
It was a sweet moment for the 35-year-old from Victoria.
“I was a Canucks fan so it’s definitely nice to stick it to them a little bit,” he said with a grin.
Benn was getting a look with Rielly early in the pre-season when he sustained a groin injury.
“It’s frustrating, but s–t happens,” he said succinctly.
Now, Benn appears eager to make up for lost time. He landed four hits and made a key block on the penalty kill while logging more than 17 minutes against the Canucks.
“He was really good,” said Keefe. “He was really competitive. All of the things we know about him: a competitive, intelligent defender. He made some plays with the puck and moved it really well. He scored us a huge goal. Particularly when you take out a presence like Brodie, it is good to have someone like that come into our group.”
Jordie Benn on this warm-up moment with his family:
“It means everything. It’s hard to talk about just because they’re the rock of the household. Mama Bear and my kids are everything.” https://t.co/8CFsIK2nNd
Matt Murray appears ready to return from an adductor injury and is scheduled to get the start on Tuesday in Pittsburgh. It will be his first time playing at PPG Paints Arena since being traded by the Penguins to the Ottawa Senators in October of 2020.
“I always enjoy going back to Pittsburgh and seeing people that I haven’t seen in quite some time so I’ll be looking forward to that,” Murray said. “Even some of the security guys in the building and people like that. You know, guys that took care of me when I was there. Just really cool to see those kinds of people.”
Murray, who backstopped the Penguins to two Stanley Cups, received a video tribute when the Senators played in Pittsburgh in January, but the goalie was sidelined at that time. The 28-year-old did play the Penguins in February, stopping 42 of 43 shots in a Senators loss.
“They’re just a dangerous group so being on the other side of it for the first time was definitely strange,” he recalled.
Murray tore his groin during a morning skate on Oct. 15 before he was set to make his second start with the Leafs.
The Thunder Bay, Ont., native has now gone through three full practices since the injury.
“To have him back healthy and to give him an opportunity to get back in the net and get rolling is important for us,” said Keefe. “It is really good to see that he has come back on the early side of his timeline. It was kind of a four-to-six week type of deal. He put in a lot of hard work. The medical team took care of him and pushed him hard. He looks very much ready. We have given him a few extra days here and the addition of this practice to add to his workload so that he is all the more prepared. We are making sure that he is 100 per cent. When I say 100 per cent, there is the physical part of it with the injury, and then there is getting in the net, stopping pucks, getting into your routine, and feeling confident that you can go and perform at your best.”
Murray allowed four goals on 23 shots in a season-opening loss in Montreal.
ContentId(1.1878109): Murray poised to play in Pittsburgh for first time since trade
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Ilya Samsonov took part in his first practice since hurting his knee on Nov. 5.
“I haven’t had an update since we left the practice, but the amount of work he did today tells me he is feeling really good,” said Keefe. “I know they were going to start off the day feeling it out and making sure they’re not progressing too quickly, but we expected him to take a step today from what he has been doing on the ice. He looked like he did that and then some. It is very encouraging and great to see both guys [Murray and Samsonov] out on the ice working together.”
Erik Kallgren and Keith Petruzzelli, who was signed to an entry-level contract after Samsonov got hurt, also took part in practice.
“The goaltending depth and defence depth have both been tested here,” acknowledged Dubas. “The goaltending one severely with Matt, Ilya, and Joseph Woll all out.”
Woll has been sidelined since undergoing off-season shoulder surgery.
“He had a bit of a setback with the shoulder,” Dubas revealed. “In his recovery, he sustained a bit of an ankle injury. He is slated to participate tomorrow with the Marlies in full practice. To me, that is a positive sign. With what he is coming back from, we just need to continue to be patient. We are hopeful that in the next two or three weeks, he can be back up to full practices, get cleared, and get rolling again as well.”
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For the first time this season, Matthews and Marner started Saturday’s game on separate lines. Matthews played between Michael Bunting and William Nylander while Marner joined Alex Kerfoot and John Tavares. And that’s how Toronto’s top six will look when Tuesday’s game starts.
“We think it makes sense to continue with it for a little bit here,” Keefe said.
“I’m really comfortable with Willy,” said Matthews, who has only scored two goals in 5-on-5 play this season. “We have really good chemistry. Even though we don’t play a whole lot together other than the power play nowadays I think we still kind of understand each other’s game and know where we want to be out there and how we want to play. We really utilized each other and generated some good chances.”
The reviews were more mixed for Tavares and Marner.
“I still think we can generate a little more, make it a little tougher on the opponent,” Tavares said. “But, certainly, two guys I’m very familiar with and played with a lot in my time here. I thought Kerf found me a few times for some nice looks so keep building on that.”
Tavares scored a career-high 47 goals while playing alongside Marner during his first season in Toronto.
“Our games do mesh well,” said Tavares. “Obviously, we played that whole year together and had a lot of success and have had periods here and there since then and still play a good amount of time on the power play. Obviously, have a really good feel for his game. I think he has a good feel for my game. So, don’t need to go out there and force the issue and do too much.”
How does Marner’s outlook change?
“For me, it’s trying to find my way through the neutral zone with the puck a little more maybe and trying to find speed off the rush and try to find him in spots where he’s coming in later or going back side and stuff like that,” he said.
Keefe split up Matthews and Marner for a 10-game stretch early last season following a slow start by the team. Tavares also played with Marner when Matthews missed nine games due to injury.
The Leafs sat in a tie for 23rd in 5-on-5 goals this season entering Monday’s games.
ContentId(1.1878110): Leafs Ice Chips: Matthews, Marner remain split up
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The Leafs have yet to live up to their own lofty expectations so far, but Dubas isn’t worried.
“It may come off as strange, but in my role with the team, I personally think going through these types of things — whether it is injury or poor play that results in some consternation about where we are at — is a very positive thing,” he said. “You learn a lot about the people you are with day in and day out. You learn who can handle it and who may not be able to.”
The noise in the market got ratcheted up after the team went winless over four games in Las Vegas and California at the end of October.
“Coming back off of that Western road trip where we did not play well, I thought our guys did an excellent job here the whole week at home in getting ready to roll and putting together a really good week,” Dubas noted. “Last week, on the [Sunday in Carolina] going into the second period, we are down again. Rather than let that start to snowball, they dug in and found their way. That, to me, is very encouraging. If you look around the league, it is so close right now. There are maybe three or four teams that would be really happy with the way they have started unequivocally. The others have been a bit up and down.”
The Leafs still sit second in the Atlantic Division, but are only two points up on Tampa Bay, Florida, Detroit and Montreal.
Dubas credits Keefe for navigating the team through this early-season turbulence.
“Everything is done with a purpose,” Dubas stressed. “There is never anything about him that isn’t purposeful. In my time knowing him and working with him, when things are not necessarily perfect, he finds a way to be at his best and get the most out of the group. The thing for me about Sheldon that has been most encouraging in working with him, even as we have gone through this season where we have had stretches where we haven’t played as well: The group responds to him.”
On Friday night, Keefe coached his 200th game behind the Leafs bench. On Nov. 20, he will mark his third anniversary in the job.
“He is always adapting and trying to change the way he does things to make sure he is always getting through to the group,” Dubas said.
ContentId(1.1878121): Dubas gives vote of confidence to Keefe and team
VANCOUVER – As the Major League Soccer season ticks down, Vanni Sartini wants his Vancouver Whitecaps to make a declaration — the team is ready to compete.
“The time of hiding ourselves, I think it’s over,” the coach said after the ‘Caps earned a 2-0 victory over the San Jose Earthquakes on Saturday.
“We need to really say that we are here to try to be at the ball until the end and trying to shoot for the highest position. That doesn’t mean that we’re going to make it, but we have the quality to do it.”
With seven games left on their regular-season schedule, the ‘Caps (13-8-6) sit in fifth spot in the congested Western Conference, just two points out of fourth.
Saturday’s loss officially eliminated the last-place Earthquakes (5-21-2) from post-season action.
Vancouver has been on a hot streak since returning from the Leagues Cup break and is unbeaten (3-0-1) in its last four outings across all competitions. The team has not allowed a goal in those matches.
“It’s the fact that we play really well,” Sartini said of the clean sheets. “We have the ball a lot, we finish our attack most of the time in their box. So it’s really hard for the other team to attack us. And then when they attack us, in the rare times that they arrive in the final third, we’re very solid.”
Recent additions have bolstered the team’s ranks, including the club’s newest designated player, Stuart Armstrong. The 32-year-old Scottish midfielder scored his first MLS goal Saturday.
Three minutes after coming on as a substitute for Alessandro Schopf, Armstrong gave Vancouver a two-goal cushion in the 87th minute.
Midfielder Pedro Vite dished a short pass to ‘Caps captain Ryan Gauld, who tapped it toward Armstrong. The former Southampton FC player then blasted a shot into the top of the net for his first strike in a Whitecaps’ jersey.
He was mobbed by teammates in the corner of the field.
“I think everyone was happy. Also for the first goal, but also that it was an important three points,” said Armstrong, who signed with the ‘Caps on Sept. 3.
“It kind of felt a little bit like last week, when we had a lot of chances and we didn’t get the three points. So today, I think everyone was just relieved to have that two-goal cushion.”
Vancouver was the dominant team from the outset Saturday and did not relent, outshooting the visitors 19-5 and controlling 54.1 per cent of possession.
Fafa Picault also found the back of the net for Vancouver, while Gauld contributed a pair of assists.
Whitecaps goalkeeper Yohei Takaoka stopped both shots he faced to collect his seventh clean sheet of the year, while Daniel made nine saves for the Quakes.
Gauld and Picault teamed up in the 22nd minute when Gauld curled a cross in and the Haitian striker headed it down toward the net, only to see Daniel catch a piece of the shot with his forearm and redirect it out of harm’s way.
The duo connected again in the 35th minute on a Vancouver corner. Gauld swung a ball in and Picault jumped up from the pack to send a glancing header in past Daniel for his ninth MLS goal of the season.
San Jose briefly appeared to level the score in the 68th minute when an unmarked Ousseni Bouda collected the ball, froze Takaoka and tapped a shot into the Vancouver net. An official quickly raised the offside flag and waved off the tally.
Daniel kept San Jose’s deficit to a single goal with a pair of solid stops in the 82nd minute.
First, the Brazilian ‘keeper dove sideways on his line to tip away a bomb from Alessandro Schopf. He was tested again on the ensuing corner and jumped up to send a header from Picault over the crossbar.
“I think we created a lot of chances again,” Gauld said.
“We probably should have put the game out of their reach sooner. But we’d be more worried if we weren’t creating the chances. Three clean sheets in a row in the league, I think it’s a big thing for us. And it gives us a good platform to go forward.”
NOTES
Vancouver played without leading scorer Brian White for a third consecutive game as the American striker works his way back from a concussion. … Gauld’s second assist marked his 15th goal contribution (six goals, nine assists) in his last 15 Whitecaps games across all competitions. … An announced crowd of 21,309 took in the game at B.C. Place.
UP NEXT
The Whitecaps kick off a two-game road swing Wednesday against the Houston Dynamo. The Earthquakes host the Seattle Sounders the same night.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 14, 2024.
MANCHESTER, England (AP) — Not good enough. That was Arne Slot’s verdict after his first defeat as Liverpool manager on Saturday.
A shock 1-0 loss at home to Nottingham Forest in the English Premier League ended Slot’s perfect record since succeeding Jurgen Klopp at Anfield at the end of last season.
“We had a lot of ball possession but only managed to create three (or) four quite good chances, so that is by far not enough if you have so much ball possession,” said the Dutchman, who suggested his team should not be losing to the likes of Forest.
“If you lose a home game it’s always a setback, especially if you face a team … we never know, maybe they will go all the way to fight for Champions League tickets, but normally this team is not ending up in the top 10, so if you lose a game against them that’s a big disappointment.”
Slot won his first three games in charge, including a memorable 3-0 victory against Manchester United before the international break.
But that run came to an end after Callum Hudson-Odoi struck in the 72nd with a curling effort from the edge of the box and beyond goalkeeper Alisson.
Liverpool’s defeat leaves Manchester City as the only team with a 100% record in the league after a 2-1 win against Brentford kept the defending champion at the top of the table.
United won at Southampton 3-0 to end its two-game losing streak.
Unstoppable Haaland
Erling Haaland moved to 99 goals for City after scoring twice against Brentford.
The Norwegian’s double came after Yoane Wissa fired Brentford ahead with just 22 seconds on the clock.
Haaland scored his 98th and 99th goals in his 103rd City appearance in all competitions. And he was the width of the post away from his third consecutive hat trick after trebles against Ipswich and West Ham.
“He’s been really, really good. Yeah, I would say he’s the best (he’s been), but it’s only four fixtures (this season),” City manager Pep Guardiola said.
Haaland, who has been nominated for the Ballon d’Or, has nine goals in four league games. He has topped the league scoring charts in each of his two seasons at City since joining from Borussia Dortmund in 2022 for $63 million.
Haaland’s first goal after 19 minutes evened the game following Wissa’s opener, which stunned the Etihad Stadium crowd. Haaland turned and swept a shot past goalkeeper Mark Flekken after a slight deflection off Ethan Pinnock.
He was then too strong for Pinnock when shaking off the defender and running through for his second in the 32nd.
He was inches away in the 81st; the shot came back off the post after beating the keeper.
Rashford snaps run
Marcus Rashford snapped a 12-game barren run in front of goal as United beat Southampton.
Rashford doubled United’s lead at Saint Mary’s after Matthijs de Ligt’s scored his first for the club. Substitute Alejandro Garnacho scored a third in the sixth minute of stoppage time.
The win came after back-to-back defeats for United.
Rashford hadn’t scored since March in United’s win over Liverpool in the FA Cup quarterfinals. He curled in a shot from the edge of the area to put Erik ten Hag’s team 2-0 up at Southampton in the 41st minute.
Ten Hag said it could be a turning point for the forward.
“For every striker, they want to be on the scoring list. Once the first is in, more is coming. Like a ketchup bottle, once it’s going, it’s coming more,” he said.
De Ligt, who joined United from Bayern Munich in the offseason, headed in from Bruno Fernandes’ cross in the 35th.
It could have been a different story if Cameron Archer converted a penalty for Southampton in the 33rd. Instead, his effort was saved by goalkeeper Andre Onana.
Newly promoted Southampton was reduced to 10 men when Jack Stephens was sent off in the 79th for a high challenge on Garnacho.
Villa comeback
After three straight defeats to start the league, Everton looked set for its first win when leading Aston Villa 2-0.
Goals from Dwight McNeil and Dominic Calvert-Lewin put Sean Dyche’s team in control until Ollie Watkins struck twice to even the game.
Jhon Duran completed Villa’s comeback and sealed a 3-2 win in the 76th to leave Everton rooted to the bottom of the table and the only top flight team without a point.
Late drama
Jean-Philippe Mateta converted a stoppage time penalty to salvage a 2-2 draw for Crystal Palace against Leicester.
Leicester led 2-0 at Selhurst Park after goals from Jamie Vardy and Stephy Mavididi.
But Mateta sparked Palace’s response with a goal in the 47th, a minute after Mavididi doubled Leicester’s advantage.
Conor Coady fouled Ismaili Sarr in the box right near fulltime and Mateta was cool enough to convert.
West Ham left it even later to salvage a point in a 1-1 draw at Fulham.
Danny Ings struck in the fifth minute of added time after Raul Jimenez’s goal looked like earning Fulham the win.
Brighton boss Fabian Hurzeler, the manager of the month for August, was frustrated as his team was held to 0-0 at home by Ipswich.
CLEVELAND (AP) — Restricted free agent forward Isaac Okoro has agreed to re-sign with the Cleveland Cavaliers on a three-year contract, a person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press on Saturday.
Okoro’s new deal is worth $38 million, according to the person who spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because the contract has not been signed or announced by the team.
ESPN.com first reported the agreement, citing Okoro’s representation.
The fifth overall pick in the 2020 NBA draft, Okoro is Cleveland’s best perimeter defender, often drawing the assignment of guarding the opponent’s top scorer. Okoro also has worked to improve his offensive game.
The 23-year-old averaged 9.4 points and 3.0 rebounds in 69 games — 42 starts — last season for the Cavs, who beat Orlando in the opening round of the playoffs before losing to eventual champion Boston.
Okoro shot a career-best 39% on 3-pointers, forcing teams to come out and guard him.
His agreement caps an extraordinarily busy summer for the Cavs that began with coach J.B. Bickerstaff being fired and replaced by Kenny Atkinson. All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell signed a three-year, $150 million extension in July, ending months of speculation that he wanted out of Cleveland.
Also, power forward Evan Mobley signed a five-year, $224 deal and center Jarrett Allen signed a three-year, $91 million extension.
