Borje Salming was such a positive influence on the Maple Leafs for so many Saturday nights.
Sports
Presence of Borje Salming lifts Maple Leafs to comeback win over Canucks
“Any time you have your own alumni (honoured) and you see the reaction of the fans, see the reaction of our players, you feel part of the family, part of the legacy,” Keefe said. “You see how important, how impactful players can be on our city.
After seeing the reception for Salming on Friday’s Hall of Fame game, Keefe hit on the all-Swedish starters for his Toronto tribute and read them out before the game — William Nylander, Calle Jarnkrok, Pierre Engvall up front, Timothy Liljegren and Rasmus Sandin on defence, Erik Kallgren in net.
“All of us just looked at each other, just smiling,” Sandin said. “We all talked about it, that it was tough for all of us to hold back tears tonight and yesterday. The win tonight was definitely for Borje.”
Still, the Leafs were quickly down two — a lost draw by Engvall with Bo Horvat eluding Justin Holl to tip a Luke Schenn shot. Michael Bunting’s retaliation penalty helped J.T. Miller make it 2-0.
But after Auston Matthews settled some booing down with a power play goal, the Tre Kronor vibe gripped the bench, Engvall finishing off a good forecheck with help from Liljegren and Jarnkrok.
Benn, without a goal since Jan. 22 when he was with the Minnesota Wild, joked he didn’t know what to do after until Matthews hugged him.
“I told the guys to stay with it, find another level,” Keefe said of falling behind 2-0. “To me, we looked like the fresher, faster team in the third despite the back-to-back and as good a third with the lead as we’ve played (three penalty kills).”
The night before, Kallgren did a credible job against the Penguins before allowing a weak winning goal.Murray is now set to start against his old team, where he won two Stanley Cups, in Pittsburgh on Tuesday.
Ilya Samsonov, who played so well in Murray’s place last month, is still out with a knee injury.
Kallgren, who made 27 saves, now has two wins in eight games, with three of those overtime losses.
“A big win and a big night in many ways,” Kallgren said. “It was emotional.”
lhornby@postmedia.com
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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.
The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
Sports
Champions Trophy host Pakistan says it’s not been told India wants to play cricket games elsewhere
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.”
Pakistan hosted last year’s Asia Cup but all India games were played in Sri Lanka under a hybrid model for the tournament. Only months later Pakistan did travel to India for the 50-over World Cup.
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.
___
AP cricket:
The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
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.
The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
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