EDMONTON – Both teams battled until the final whistle, tied with just eight seconds left at Commonwealth Stadium on Sunday night, but it was Lewis Ward who kicked the winning walk-off field goal for the Ottawa REDBLACKS as they came out victorious, defeating the Edmonton Elks 37-34 in Week 6 action.
Dru Brown threw for 480 yards, two touchdowns and an interception, while three REDBLACKS receivers had over 100 yards in the win as Kalil Pimpleton had a standout game of 153 yards and a touchdown, Dominique Rhymes tallied 131 yards, and Justin Hardy recorded 110 yards and a touchdown.
McLeod Bethel-Thompson threw for 272 yards and two touchdowns in the loss, and Geno Lewis led the Elks in receiving with 89 yards.
Ottawa wasted no time getting on the board first as the visiting team, as a 25-yard field goal from Ward put the REDBLACKS ahead after using up seven minutes of clock in the first quarter.
Having to punt on their first drive of the game, the Elks made the most of their second try on offence as Kevin Brown and Javon Leake carried the drive downfield, in combination with Bethel-Thompson taking it on the ground himself, before connecting with Arkell Smith for a 10-yard touchdown, Smith’s first in the CFL, and the lead.
Riding that momentum into the second quarter, the Elks defence forced a two-and-out from the REDBLACKS as Bethel-Thompson found Hergy Mayala, back in the lineup off an injury, for his fourth touchdown of the season to take a 14-3 lead.
Nick Anderson recorded his first CFL sack on Brown, forcing Ward to kick a 31-yard field goal for the REDBLACKS, but on their next offensive drive Ottawa capitalized on a fumble from Leake to get the ball back.
Bob Dyce took a risk challenging a pass interference call on the Edmonton six-yard line, which was overturned in his favour to keep the drive alive, resulting in Dustin Crum running in his third rushing touchdown of the year to make the game 15-13 at the half.
Both defences came out strong in the third quarter, forcing punts from each team before the Elks were first to put point on the board in the second half thanks to a 42-yard kick from Boris Bede.
But just two plays later the REDBLACKS would swing the momentum back their own way as Brown found Pimpleton, in his CFL debut, for 70 yards and a touchdown, with Rhymes securing the two-point conversion to give Ottawa a three-point cushion.
Attempting to even the score at the beginning of the fourth quarter, a 31-yard kick attempt from Bede went wide to the left, and the REDBLACKS wasted no time to further their lead as Brown connected with Hardy for 68 yards and another score.
Forcing a punt from the Elks defensively, Ottawa led by double digits after Ward kicked his third successful field goal attempt of the night, this time from 35 yards out.
But the Elks were not done for the night despite the deficit, as a one-handed catch from Lewis followed by an 18-yard rush from Kurleigh Gittens Jr. put Edmonton on the REDBLACKS seven-yard line.
A roughing the passer call put the REDBLACKS on the three-yard line, and the fifth touchdown of the season from Dakota Prukop followed by a successful two-point conversion catch from Gittens Jr. made the game a four-point affair.
Just as Edmonton felt they were back in the game, Brown found Rhymes for 66 yards to get down to the Edmonton 20-yard line, before connecting with him two plays later for another 18 yards, hanging onto the ball despite a tough hit to put the REDBLACKS at the four-yard line.
The Elks defence held forcing third down on their own three-yard line, but the REDBLACKS opted to take the field goal as Ward put a chip shot through the uprights from 10 yards out to make it a seven-point game with just over two minutes to play.
Lewis caught a massive 22-yard reception for the Elks to put them on Ottawa’s 21-yard line with 1:13 left on the clock, and a pass interference call put Edmonton on the one-yard line. Prukop punched his second of the night in with eight seconds left on the clock, and Bede’s extra point tied the game.
After a kickoff went out of bounds, another massive throw from Brown to Pimpleton for 29 yards set up Ward to kick from 38 yards out, and the successful kick meant a walk-off win for the REDBLACKS.
Edmonton and Ottawa will meet again to open Week 7 action, as the Elks will travel to TD Place Stadium on July 19 to take on the REDBLACKS at 7:00 p.m. EDT.
VANCOUVER – The Vancouver Canucks announced Tuesday that defenceman Alex Edler will sign a one-day contract in order to officially retire as a member of the NHL team.
The signing will be part of a celebration of Edler’s career held Oct. 11 when the Canucks host the Philadelphia Flyers.
The Canucks selected Edler, from Ostersund, Sweden, in the third round (91st overall) of the 2004 NHL draft.
He played in 925 career games for the Canucks between the 2006-07 and 2020-21 seasons, ranking fourth in franchise history and first among defencemen.
The 38-year-old leads all Vancouver defencemen with 99 goals, 310 assists and 177 power-play points with the team.
Edler also appeared in 82 career post-season contests with Vancouver and was an integral part of the Canucks’ run to the 2011 Stanley Cup final, putting up 11 points (2-9-11) across 25 games.
“I am humbled and honoured to officially end my career and retire as a member of the Vancouver Canucks,” Edler said in a release. “I consider myself lucky to have started my career with such an outstanding organization, in this amazing city, with the best fans in the NHL. Finishing my NHL career where it all began is something very special for myself and my family.”
Edler played two seasons for Los Angeles in 2021-22 and 2022-23. He did not play in the NHL last season.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2024.
The sixth-ranked Canadian women will face World Cup champion Spain in an international friendly next month.
Third-ranked Spain will host Canada on Oct. 25 at Estadio Francisco de la Hera in Almendralejo.
The game will be the first for the Canadian women since the Paris Olympics, where they lost to Germany in a quarterfinal penalty shootout after coach Bev Priestman was sent home and later suspended for a year by FIFA over her part in Canada’s drone-spying scandal.
In announcing the Spain friendly, Canada Soccer said more information on the interim women’s coaching staff for the October window will come later. Assistant coach Andy Spence took charge of the team in Priestman’s absence at the Olympics.
Spain finished fourth in Paris, beaten 1-0 by Germany in the bronze-medal match.
Canada is winless in three previous meetings (0-2-1) with Spain, most recently losing 1-0 at the Arnold Clark Cup in England in February 2022.
The teams played to a scoreless draw in May 2019 in Logroñés, Spain in a warm-up for the 2019 World Cup. Spain won 1-0 in March 2019 at the Algarve Cup in São João da Venda, Portugal.
Spain is a powerhouse in the women’s game these days.
It won the FIFA U-20 World Cup in 2022 and was runner-up in 2018. And it ousted Canada 2-1 in the round of 16 of the current U-20 tournament earlier this month in Colombia before falling 1-0 to Japan after extra time in the quarterfinal.
Spain won the FIFA U-17 World Cup in 2018 and 2022 and has finished on the podium on three other occasions.
FC Barcelona’s Aitana Bonmati (2023) and Alexia Putellas (2021 and ’22) have combined to win the last three Women’s Ballon d’Or awards.
And Barcelona has won three of the last four UEFA Women’s Champions League titles.
“We continue to strive to diversify our opponent pool while maintaining a high level of competition.” Daniel Michelucci, Canada Soccer’s director of national team operations, said in a statement. “We anticipate a thrilling encounter, showcasing two of the world’s top-ranked teams.”
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2024
TORONTO – The Toronto Maple Leafs have announced cookie brand Oreo as the team’s helmet sponsor for the upcoming NHL season.
The new helmet will debut Sunday when Toronto opens its 2024-25 pre-season against the Ottawa Senators at Scotiabank Arena.
The Oreo logo replaces Canadian restaurant chain Pizza Pizza, which was the Leafs’ helmet sponsor last season.
Previously, social media platform TikTok sponsored Toronto starting in the 2021-22 regular season when the league began allowing teams to sell advertising space on helmets.
The Oreo cookie consists of two chocolate biscuits around a white icing filling and is often dipped in milk.
Fittingly, the Leafs wear the Dairy Farmers of Ontario’s “Milk” logo on their jerseys.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2024.
