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Sights and Sounds from Heritage Classic: Hinostroza, Krebs lead Sabres over Maple Leafs – Sportsnet.ca

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It wouldn’t be an outdoor game without snow setting the scene as fans made their way to Hamilton Ont., the site of the 2022 Heritage Classic.

The Toronto Maple Leafs and Buffalo Sabres got a taste of what the elements would be like when they practised at Tim Hortons Field on Saturday. Most of the players couldn’t help but think back to their childhood when they would go skate at their local outdoor rink.

Before the puck could even be dropped in either tilt, though, the scene in Hamilton was widely praised by those in attendance.

From those pre-puck drop moments and all through the contest, here are the can’t-miss sights and sounds from the NHL’s 2022 Outdoor Game.

Maple Leafs and Sabres get creative with Heritage Classic entrance

The Leafs and Sabres decided to take an unconventional approach to their pre-game attire given the unique nature of the event.

Gone were the traditional pre-game suits in exchange for construction gear and Flint Tropics attire?

Paying tribute to Hamilton’s reputation as one of Canada’s leading industrial centres as a main export for the country’s iron and steel industry, Toronto wore construction uniforms and yes, the players made sure to have their safety goggles.

Head coach Sheldon Keefe said the decision to wear the construction gear was player driven and an ode to Stelco, a 100-year-old company based in Hamilton.

The Sabres decided to take a much different approach to their pre-game attire as they paid tribute to the Flint Tropics inspired by Will Ferrell film “Semi-Pro.” Like the Leafs, the idea was player driven and according to head coach Don Granato, the team had to go back to the drawing board as their idea was used by another team.

This isn’t the first time teams decided to get creative with their pre-game attire for an outdoor game.

The Tampa Bay Lightning arrived to the Stadium Series in a double-decker bus that was pulled by a tractor going with an all-denim “Canadian tuxedo” look. Nashville Predators wore jeans, black rock ‘n’ roll band T-shirts and custom-made leather jackets and trucker hats.

At the Winter Classic in Minnesota where the temperature was minus-8 degrees Fahrenheit the St. Louis Bluesarrived wearing Hawaiian shirts and other beach attire.

Maple Leafs and Sabres take to the ice at a snowy Tim Hortons Field

The Leafs and Sabres needed to make sure they were warmed up for today’s game as the forecast for today’s game was At the Winter Classic was minus-2 degrees Celcius with snow blowing.

Canadian women’s hockey team joins for the national anthem

Fresh off their win over Team USA in the “Rivalry Rematch,” the Canadian Women’s hockey team took the main stage for the national anthem and were greeted with a nice reception from those in attendance.

Wayne Gretzky also addressed the fans in attendance as he paid tribute to his father Walter during the ceremonial faceoff.

Three goals in three minutes

Boy, that escalated quickly. After a scoreless opening frame, the pace picked up at the start of the second with the teams combining for three goals in the first three minutes. Ondrej Kase broke the ice for the Maple Leafs just 40 seconds into the period, but Peyton Krebs knotted it up 41 seconds later for the Sabres. The tie was short-lived with Auston Matthews putting Toronto back into the lead with his league-leading 45th goal of the season at the 2:57 mark. Phew.

That’s a Dang-It

Vinnie Hinostroza added another equalizer with 9:07 remaining in the second to tie it 2-2 although this one was by accident. Hinostroza fired a pass into the slot and Maple Leafs defenceman T.J. Brodie redirect the puck with his skate right into his own net.

Gold, Canada

The Canadian women’s hockey gold medal-winning team from the Beijing Winter Olympics was honoured during the second intermission. Canada defeated the U.S. 3-2 in last month’s final with (who else?) Marie-Philip Poulin scoring the winning goal.

Sabres pull away

Hinostroza scored again 5:16 into the third period as the Sabres pulled ahead and then pulled away. Krebs added his second of the game then Tage Thompson fired into an empty net to make it 5-2.

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DeMar DeRozan scores 27 points to lead the Kings past the Raptors 122-107

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SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — DeMar DeRozan scored 27 points in a record-setting performance and the Sacramento Kings beat the Toronto Raptors 122-107 on Wednesday night.

Domantas Sabonis added 17 points, 13 assists and 11 rebounds for his third triple-double of the season for Sacramento. He shot 6 for 6 from the field and 5 for 5 at the free-throw line.

Keegan Murray chipped in with 22 points and 12 rebounds, and De’Aaron Fox scored 21.

The 35-year-old DeRozan has scored at least 20 points in each of his first eight games with the Kings, breaking a franchise mark established by Chris Webber when he reached 20 in his first seven games with Sacramento in 1999.

DeRozan spent the past three seasons with the Chicago Bulls. The six-time All-Star also has played for Toronto and San Antonio during his 16-year NBA career.

RJ Barrett had 23 points to lead the Raptors. Davion Mitchell scored 20 in his first game in Sacramento since being traded to Toronto last summer.

Takeaways

Raptors: Toronto led for most of the first three quarters before wilting in the fourth. The Raptors were outscored 33-14 in the final period.

Kings: Fox played strong defense but struggled again shooting from the floor as he is dealing with a finger injury. Fox went 5 for 17 and just 2 of 8 on 3-pointers. He is 5 for 25 from beyond the arc in his last three games.

Key moment

The Kings trailed 95-89 early in the fourth before going on a 9-0 run that gave them the lead for good. DeRozan started the spurt with a jumper, and Malik Monk scored the final seven points.

Key stat

Sabonis had the eighth game in the NBA since at least 1982-83 with a triple-double while missing no shots from the field or foul line. The previous player to do it was Josh Giddey for Oklahoma City against Portland on Jan. 11.

Up next

Raptors: At the Los Angeles Clippers on Saturday night, the third stop on a five-game trip.

Kings: Host the Clippers on Friday night.

___

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Whitecaps take confidence, humility into decisive playoff matchup vs. LAFC

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VANCOUVER – The Vancouver Whitecaps are one win away from moving on to the next round of the Major League Soccer playoffs.

To get there, however, the Whitecaps will need to pull off the improbable by defeating the powerhouse Los Angeles FC for a second straight game.

Vancouver blanked the visitors 3-0 on Sunday to level their best-of-three first-round playoff series at a game apiece. As the matchup shifts back to California for a decisive Game 3 on Friday, the Whitecaps are looking for a repeat performance, said striker Brian White.

“We take the good and the bad from last game, learn from what we could have done better and go to LAFC with confidence and, obviously, with a whole lot of respect,” he said.

“We know that we can go there and give them a very good fight and hopefully come away with a win.”

The winner of Friday’s game will face the No. 4-seed Seattle Sounders in a one-game Western Conference semifinal on Nov. 23 or 24.

The ‘Caps finished the regular season eighth in the west with a 13-13-8 record and have since surprised many with their post-season play.

First, Vancouver trounced its regional rivals, the Portland Timbers, 5-0 in a wild-card game. Then, the squad dropped a tightly contested 2-1 decision to the top-seeded L.A. before posting a decisive home victory on Sunday.

Vancouver has scored seven goals this post-season, second only to the L.A. Galaxy (nine). Vancouver also leads the league in expected goals (6.84) through the playoffs.

No one outside of the club expected the Whitecaps to win when the Vancouver-L. A. series began, said defender Ranko Veselinovic.

“We’ve shown to ourselves that we can compete with them,” he said.

Now in his fifth season with the ‘Caps, Veselinovic said Friday’s game will be the biggest he’s played for the team.

“We haven’t had much success in the playoffs so, definitely, this is the one that can put our season on another level,” he said.

This is the second year in a row the Whitecaps have faced LAFC in the first round of the playoffs and last year, Vancouver was ousted in two straight games.

The team isn’t thinking about revenge as it prepares for Game 3, White said.

“More importantly than (beating LAFC), we want to get to the next round,” he said. “LAFC’s a very good team. We’ve come up against them a number of times in different competitions and they always seem to get the better of us. So it’d be huge for us to get the better of them this time.”

Earning a win last weekend required slowing L.A.’s transition game and limiting offensive opportunities for the team’s big stars, including Denis Bouanga.

Those factors will be important again on Friday, said Whitecaps head coach Vanni Sartini, who warned that his team could face a different style of game.

“I think the most important thing is going to be to match their intensity at the beginning of the game,” he said. “Because I think they’re going to come at us a million miles per hour.”

The ‘Caps will once again look to captain Ryan Gauld for some offensive firepower. The Scottish attacking midfielder leads MLS in playoff goals with five and has scored in all three of Vancouver’s post-season appearances this year.

Gearing up for another do-or-die matchup is exciting, Gauld said.

“Knowing it’s a winner-takes-all kind of game, being in that kind of environment is nice,” he said. “It’s when you see the best in players.”

LAFC faces the bulk of the pressure heading into the matchup, Sartini said, given the club’s appearances in the last two MLS Cup finals and its 2022 championship title.

“They’re supposed to win and we are not,” the coach said. “But it’s beautiful to have a little bit of pressure on us, too.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 6, 2024.

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PWHL unveils game jerseys with new team names, logos

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TORONTO – The Professional Women’s Hockey League has revealed the jersey designs for its six newly named teams.

Each PWHL team operated under its city name, with players wearing jerseys featuring the league’s logo in its inaugural season before names and logos were announced last month.

The Toronto Sceptres, Montreal Victoire, Ottawa Charge, Boston Fleet, Minnesota Frost and New York Sirens will start the PWHL’s second season on Nov. 30 with jerseys designed to reflect each team’s identity and to be sold to the public as replicas.

Led by PWHL vice-president of brand and marketing Kanan Bhatt-Shah, the league consulted Creative Agency Flower Shop to design the jerseys manufactured by Bauer, the PWHL said Thursday in a statement.

“Players and fans alike have been waiting for this moment and we couldn’t be happier with the six unique looks each team will don moving forward,” said PWHL senior vice president of business operations Amy Scheer.

“These jerseys mark the latest evolution in our league’s history, and we can’t wait to see them showcased both on the ice and in the stands.”

Training camps open Tuesday with teams allowed to carry 32 players.

Each team’s 23-player roster, plus three reserves, will be announced Nov. 27.

Each team will play 30 regular-season games, which is six more than the first season.

Minnesota won the first Walter Cup on May 29 by beating Boston three games to two in the championship series.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 7, 2024.

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