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Round 1 Recap: Calgary, BC complete trade; Williams goes first – CFL.ca

Published

4 years ago

April 30, 2020

TORONTO — The 2020 CFL Draft started off with some excitement as a trade ensued before the first pick had even happened.

Calgary, who held the first overall pick in the draft, decided to swap picks with the BC Lions. GM and president John Hufnagel traded the first overall and the 15th overall pick to the BC Lions, in exchange for their third overall pick and their 12th overall pick.

With the first overall pick, the BC Lions selected linebacker Jordan Williams, who is the first regional combine participant to be taken first overall and the first linebacker to go No. 1 since Winnipeg took Henoc Muamba first in 2011.

» Draft Tracker: Each pick as they happen
» Mock Draft 2.0: Ferguson weighs in on who will go first overall
» Scouting Bureau: Final April Rankings
» How to watch the 2020 CFL Draft live

Williams had an excellent showing a the Ontario Regional Combine in March, posting the best 40-yard dash (4.48 seconds) of the day and showed a 39-inch vertical while going for 20 reps on the bench press and recording a 10-foot, 8.5-inch broad jump. That helped his draft stock immensely, as CFL.ca’s Marshall Ferguson had Williams first overall in his second mock draft.

Next up, Mississauga native Dejon Brissett was selected by his hometown team, the Toronto Argonauts, second overall. The addition of Brissett adds another Canadian to the Argos’ receivers group, joining Juwan Brescacin and Natey Adjei, who also hail from the Toronto area. Brissett is the seventh receiver the Argos have drafted in the first round, joining Brian Jones, J.F. Tremblay, Matt Duboc, Jock Climie, Paul Fedor, and Ted Smale.

Calgary went with a defensive lineman with the third overall pick, selecting Southeastern Lousiana’s Isaac Adeyemi-Berglund.

Edmonton took the first offensive lineman of the 2020 Draft, selecting Buffalo’s Tomas Jack-Kurdyla. Hamilton followed suit, picking O-lineman Coulter Woodmansey out of Guelph with their fifth overall selection. Woodmansey became the highest Guelph player chosen since Rob Maver went 5th overall in 2010. Before that was Mike O’Shea, who was fourth overall in 1993.

Adam Auclair, who was selected sixth overall by Ottawa, became the 11th player from Laval to be drafted in the first round since 2005. Auclair’s selection is the highest for a defensive back since Chris Ackie went fourth overall in 2015.

The Riders then took a local product, offensive lineman Mattland Riley out of the University of Saskatchewan, with the seventh overall pick.

Hamilton went with a defensive end for their second pick of the first round, selecting North Dakota’s Mason Bennett eighth overall.

The Argos rounded out the opening nine picks with the selection of offensive lineman Theren Churchill out of Regina. Churchill is the first Regina player selected in Round 1 since OL Brendon LaBatte, selected sixth overall by Winnipeg in 2008.

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Edler to sign one-day contract to retire as a Vancouver Canuck

Published

16 hours ago

September 17, 2024

Anne Joseph

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.

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Sixth-ranked Canadian women to face World Cup champion Spain in October friendly

Published

22 hours ago

September 17, 2024

Anne Joseph

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

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Maple Leafs announce Oreo as new helmet sponsor for upcoming NHL season

Published

1 day ago

September 17, 2024

Anne Joseph

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.

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