TSN Toronto Reporter Mark Masters reports on the Maple Leafs, who practised at the Ford Performance Centre on Tuesday before travelling to Montreal for Wednesday night’s game against the Canadiens.
Auston Matthews finished 10th in Hart Trophy voting last season. The Leafs centre is on track to play a more prominent role in the most-valuable-player discussion this year.
“He’s a special player who’s putting together an MVP-type season,” said veteran forward Jason Spezza.
Matthews has scored in eight straight games he’s played in and leads the National Hockey League in goals with 11.
“He’s playing two-way hockey,” Spezza observed. “He’s up and down the ice. He controls the play and is scoring big goals for us at big times.”
The latest timely tally came in the third period on Monday against the Vancouver Canucks when Matthews blasted a one timer along the ice and past a bewildered Braden Holtby. It was his fifth game-winning goal of the season, which also leads the league. It allowed the Leafs to earn two points on a night when they weren’t at their best.
Matthews, who described the win as “ugly,” appeared to be frustrated in the second period with the Lady Byng Trophy nominee taking his first penalty of the season. But when it mattered most, Matthews stepped up.
“He held his composure,” Spezza revealed. “He spoke up a little bit in the room. He’s growing in his confidence as a leader.”
“He’s playing some excellent hockey,” Canadiens goalie Carey Price told reporters in Montreal. “His game speaks for itself. He’s a powerhouse guy and he’s got an amazing shot … It’s fun to watch him play out there when I’m not on the ice with him.”
Price on Matthews: ‘It’s fun to watch him play… when I’m not on the ice with him’
Carey Price talks about Auston Matthews and why they’ll need to limit his time and space on Wednesday. He explains why it’s fun to watch him play as long as he’s not on the ice with him. Josh Anderson talks about their rivalry with the Leafs and why it should only heat up with both teams at the top of the North.
Matthews is an imposing figure at 6-foot-3, but hasn’t always been the most physical player. However, this season he’s landing more bodychecks than ever before. He led Toronto with four hits on Monday.
“It’s tough enough playing against forwards of his calibre,” said Leafs defenceman Travis Dermott, “but when they start hitting and doing stuff that makes your life even harder then it steps to a different level so it’s great to see that coming out of Matty. I’m sure he’ll keep it going and have a few more tricks up his sleeve as well.”
Matthews is at 4.3 hits per 60 minutes so far this year, which is way up from 1.6 last season. The Arizona native always owned a howitzer of a shot, but is now consistently praised by teammates for his attention to detail defensively.
“He gets in people’s way,” said Mitch Marner. “He’s doing better defensive-wise getting the puck back in our own zone.”
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This is the first season Matthews and Marner have started on the same line from Day 1 of training camp.
“You’re seeing their chemistry really evolve,” said Spezza. “They’re learning to find each other in the soft spots of the rink. They’re two very different players, but they think the game on the same level so they complement each other really well and our team is benefiting from them reading off each other. We’re really seeing, even in practice, that their chemistry is better and better.”
The Matthews-Marner magic was certainly evident on Monday. The game-winning goal came moments after an offensive zone faceoff, which Matthews won. It was a play they clearly had in mind before the puck dropped.
“Mitch just came up to me and said, ‘Look for me,’ so that’s what I did and then he did the rest with Auston,” said defenceman Rasmus Sandin who picked up a secondary assist on the play. “It wasn’t too hard.”
Marner has now picked up a point in eight straight games.
“I just try to pop open for him,” Matthews said. “[Zach Hyman] had a really great screen there and I just tried to shoot it as hard as I can. Sandy made a quick play in and out, it just happened really quick.”
Matthews and Marner were also on the ice for Toronto’s first goal. Marner controlled the play high in the Canucks zone before getting the puck to the net and forcing Nate Schmidt into an awkward situation. The defenceman, who was battling with Hyman, tried to kick the puck away, but instead put it right into the wheelhouse of Morgan Rielly who made no mistake.
“With the structure we have in the offensive zone, it allows for a lot of movement, a lot of opportunity for players to use their skills and move to different spots,” said coach Sheldon Keefe. “There’s nothing really set in terms of where people should be in our structure. It’s a matter of motion and movement and placing people and, you look at last night as an example, it’s not exactly something you would practice, but it’s well within the structure and things we talk about.”
Keefe has designed a system that allows his high-end players like Matthews and Marner to freelance in the offensive zone.
“The key is to allow their instincts to take over,” he said. “That’s a part of who they are and that’s why you want to have players like that so you need to give them that freedom.”
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After missing the last two games, Dermott skated on the third pair with Zach Bogosian at practice.
“Just a really fun charley horse,” a smiling Dermott said of his injury. “It’s a little more nagging than you expect it to be when it’s just, technically, a bruise, but the boys here have been great helping me get it figured out, get it loose and getting me back pretty quick. I feel pretty good now and just waiting to get in the lineup.”
Dermott sustained the injury last Thursday when he attempted to avoid a hit by Canucks forward Tyler Motte.
“I tried to kind of get out of the way and I left my leg too late behind me,” Dermott said. “I don’t think it was a dirty hit by any means and I take the onus on me for being too slow.”
Leafs Ice Chips: Mikheyev with Tavares; Dermott returns
Travis Dermott was back at Leafs practice on Tuesday, after leaving Thursday’s game against the Canucks in the first period with what the defenceman described as a ‘fun’ charley horse. TSN’s Mark Masters has more on his return and some of the new-look lines and special teams units at practice.
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After Columbus Blue Jackets head coach John Tortorella decided to bench newly acquired winger Patrik Laine on Monday night, Keefe was asked for his philosophy on sitting players to send a message.
“Everything’s situational and it’s usually an accumulation of things,” Keefe said. “You don’t overreact to one incident or one different thing. For me, it’s usually the end of a long line of events that have occurred with a lot of communication and discussion. It’s not something I resort to all that often.”
Keefe acknowledged dealing with a star player is a bit different when it comes to this kind of disciplinary action. A top-line player may miss a shift or two while a depth guy could find himself out of the lineup entirely moving forward.
“Sometimes an in-game benching, while you’re sending a message to a certain player, it can also work against the team and your ability to win a certain game so there’s a balance there as well,” Keefe said.
Keefe played for Tortorella when he broke into the NHL with the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2000 and learned a lot from his time around the veteran bench boss.
“Knowing Torts it would have been lots behind the scenes that would’ve led to such a decision,” Keefe said. “It wouldn’t have been anything abrupt. He’s very purposeful with how he goes about things.”
Keefe on Torts: ‘He’s very purposeful how he goes about things’
Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe played for John Tortorella during his NHL career and says that when he sends a message by benching a player, it is something that has been built up, and not a knee-jerk reaction. Leafs veteran Jason Spezza also shared his thoughts on being benched over the course of his career and how it is looked at differently now.
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Toronto got outshot 27-7 in the first two periods on Monday, but Frederik Andersen held the fort. Although after the game the Dane was more interested in praising his teammates than basking in his first-star performance.
“I’m really proud of how they stuck with it in those two periods and didn’t start cheating for offence or anything like that,” Andersen said. “They kept being inside, trying to take away time and space and not giving up their defensive commitment to force something.”
Keefe felt like the Leafs did a decent job keeping the Canucks to the outside despite all the shots. Still, Andersen needed to make some big saves, including robbing Justin Bailey on a two-on-one rush late in the first period.
“I feel focused,” Andersen said. “I feel like I’m moving well, tracking the puck well.”
After allowing nine goals in the first two games, Andersen is rolling. He’s got a .919 save percentage in his last nine starts.
When Andersen is at his best, what’s he doing?
“Keeping things simple,” he said. “Small movements and easy tracking. Just being ready, reading the play well and keeping the focus on that one-shot-at-a-time mentality. Obviously, it’s a little bit more complicated than that, but just being on top of the puck and seeing it well is the key to my game to make it look easy. When I play my best it looks easier than at other times. I think that’s the main key.”
NHL: Canucks 1, Maple Leafs 3
The Canucks out shot the Maple Leafs 27-7 through two periods, but Auston Matthews broke the tie by extended his goal scoring streak to eight games and Alex Kerfoot scored 11 seconds after that. Frederik Andersen finished with 31 saves and Mitch Marner’s point streak is now at eight games, as Toronto swept the three-game set against the Canucks.
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.
