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'We'll grow through this': Canada shut out by Uruguay in World Cup friendly – CBC Sports

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Despite Canada’s ability to control much of the game against a formidable opponent, it was the missed chances that stung most.

Canada suffered a 2-0 loss at the hands of No. 13 Uruguay in its second last friendly before heading to Qatar for the World Cup. The 43rd-ranked Canadians dominated possession and outshot their opponents but were unable to capitalize on several occasions.

“Disappointed. I just spoke with the lads. [I] let them know that when you have that type of opportunity in a game, you got to take the chances, you got to win football matches and there’s not going to be any special award for losing games where you have a chance to win them,” head coach John Herdman said post-match.

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“You lose games like that, you’re going to drop out of the World Cup pretty quickly and go home. I’m happy with elements of the performance, don’t get us wrong. We’re a real team and we’ve got to take those moments.”

Canada was coming off a 2-0 win over the World Cup hosts last week.

Although Canada dominated possession (59-41 in the first half, 55-45 overall), it was Uruguay that set the tone early making the most of its opportunities.

WATCH | Canadian men fail to convert chances in World Cup tune-up:

Uruguay shut out Canada in penultimate friendly before World Cup

11 hours ago

Duration 0:55

Luis Suarez set up Darwin Nunez’s header for the insurance goal, as Uruguay blanked Canada 2-0 in the Canadians’ second-last friendly before the FIFA World Cup kicks off in November.

Nicolas De La Cruz scored on a free kick from the left side just outside of the box in the sixth minute, putting by the near-side post as goalkeeper Milan Borjan could not get enough on the ball to stop it.

Following a close miss on a volley shot from a Luis Suarez cross five minutes earlier, Liverpool star Darwin Nunez made up for it with a header goal in the 33rd minute off a cross from Suarez to double the score.

There’s moments I thought we could have crossed the ball and we wanted the extra touch … and there’s moments where we could have pulled the trigger and it’s an extra pass.— Canada head coach John Herdman

“The goal from Suarez to Nunes, I mean, it’s just two top top, top, top level players where that’s what they do. They got a few chances and they took them,” Herdman said.

The Canadians on the other hand, had trouble scoring on legitimate chances. Canada outshot Uruguay 11-6 (3-2 on target) and took seven corner kicks to zero for Uruguay.

Larin denied early on

“I know I’ve got top level players as well. We’ve got to take our chances,” Herdman said. “There’s moments I thought we could have crossed the ball and we wanted that extra touch and there’s people waiting and there’s moments where we could have pulled the trigger and it’s an extra pass. We’ll grow through this.”

Alistair Johnston missed on a header from a cross sent by Alphonso Davies in the 12th minute. A dozen minutes later, Cyle Larin found an opening, taking a pass from Davies, but his left-footed shot was saved.

In the 39th minute, Davies drew the attention of multiple defenders outside of the box before sliding a pass to an open Larin inside the box. With the ball bouncing in front of the Brampton, Ont., native, he had his shot blocked after attempting to get it set properly.

Larin missed again one minute later on a header following a cross from Samuel Adekugbe. In the 41st minute, Davies once again pulled the eyes of multiple Uruguay defenders and sliced a through ball to send a streaking Jonathan David into the box but his shot was stopped.

Getting into Uruguay’s zone following a giveaway, Davies corralled the ball after a Canada cross was knocked away and found David driving towards the box. David turned around and shot from just inside the box but Sergio Rochet saved it leading to a corner.

After Davies’ corner was cleared out of bounds, Uruguay handed the Canadians a free kick with a foul in the 64th. Stephen Eustaquio sent a pretty cross into the box, but Kamal Miller headed the ball just over the net.

Twenty-one minutes later, Davies took a pass from Tajon Buchanan but had his shot blocked from outside of the box. In the 91st minute, he was high and wide on a shot from outside of the box. Junior Hoilett had the final chance but also went above the net in stoppage time.

“Normally, we’re used to our players just finishing these types of plays, right? Now it kind of was the opposite. On a normal day, I know [David], [Davies] can finish those balls. I just want to think they’re going to save it for Qatar,” said Eustaquio after the match. “We lost 2-0, but it’s a test. Qatar (is) in two months and I think we’ll be ready.”

“It’s another level. You can’t switch off the whole game. I just felt like it was two moments that cost us the game but throughout the game, I thought we were brilliant,” Miller added. “Second half, I felt like we dominated, kept them out of our box. It’s just those critical moments that are going to win or lose you critical football matches.

“The back line room plus Milan are going to look at the performance and see what we have to fix so we don’t feel like this again.”

Canada entered the game having defeated No. 48 Qatar 2-0 last week. The national team plays its final World Cup tune-up match on Nov. 17 against 24th-ranked Japan before taking the pitch Nov. 23 against Belgium in World Cup action.

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Allen on trade to Devils from Habs: 'Sometimes you've got to be a little bit selfish' – Yahoo Canada Sports

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Jake Allen loved being a member of the Montreal Canadiens.

The hockey-mad market, the crackling Bell Centre on a Saturday night, the Original Six franchise’s iconic logo.

The 33-year-old goaltender is also realistic.

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With the Canadiens still in full rebuild mode — and two young netminders in Sam Montembeault and Cayden Primeau ready for more playing time — Allen could see the writing on the wall.

Desperate for help in their own crease, the New Jersey Devils asked Montreal about the veteran’s availability. But the team, general manager Tom Fitzgerald told reporters earlier this month, was initially on Allen’s no-trade list.

There wasn’t anything the Fredericton product disliked about the organization or city. The Devils simply appeared to have their crease set for years to come.

But when the club that finished with 112 points and made the second round of the playoffs in 2022-23 was badly hampered by poor play from Vitek Vanecek, Nico Daws and Akira Schmid — each netminder owned save percentages below .900 — the Devils circled back.

And Allen had changed his tune.

“Loved my time as a Hab,” he said of pulling on Montreal’s red, white and blue threads. “I always will cherish that. Put on probably the most special jersey in hockey, in my books. But you realize in your career, it doesn’t last forever.

“You’ve got to make decisions sometimes.”

Allen, who is signed through next season, eventually agreed to a deal that sent him to New Jersey ahead of the NHL’s March 8 trade deadline for a conditional third-round pick at the 2025 draft.

Apart from playing meaningful hockey on a team trying to claw its way back into the Eastern Conference playoff race, the swap gave him more runway to get his family settled in a new city instead of waiting to see what this summer’s crowded goalie market might bring.

“Sometimes you’ve got to be a little bit selfish,” said Allen, a Stanley Cup champion with the St. Louis Blues in 2019. “Look yourself in the mirror and wonder what’s best for you and your family.”

He’s been really good for his new team.

Allen was lights out in Tuesday’s first period against the Toronto Maple Leafs, making an eye-popping 25 saves in what would turn into New Jersey’s 6-3 victory.

So far he’s 4-2-0 with a .925 save percentage and a 2.51 goals against average in six starts for the Devils, who sit five points back of the East’s second wild-card spot.

“A real pro,” said interim head coach Travis Green.

Allen is a combined 10-14-3 in 2023-24 with a .900 save percentage and a 3.39 GAA. Across his 11 seasons with St. Louis, Montreal and now New Jersey, he’s 193-164-41 with a .908 save percentage and 2.75 GAA.

“Makes the saves we need to get some momentum back,” Devils captain Nico Hischier said. “If you have a solid goalie in the net, that makes your work easier.”

Allen is also 11-12 with a .924 and a 2.06 GAA all-time in the playoffs — a good sign for his new club should New Jersey manage to make the cut.

For now, though, he’s just enjoying being back in a post-season race.

“I thought this was a good opportunity to come in the rest of this year, play some games,” Allen said.

“It’s been a good start.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 28, 2024.

___

Follow @JClipperton_CP on X.

Joshua Clipperton, The Canadian Press

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Matthews game-time decision for Maple Leafs against Capitals with illness – NHL.com

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TORONTOAuston Matthews will be a game-time decision for the Toronto Maple Leafs against the Washington Capitals at Scotiabank Arena on Thursday (7 p.m. ET; SN1, MNMT) because of an illness.

“It’s going to be on how he feels throughout the day,” Maple Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe said.

The forward did not participate in Toronto’s morning skate. Max Domi took his place as the center on a line between Tyler Bertuzzi and Mitch Marner, a right wing recovering from a high-ankle sprain sustained March 7 and will be out the next two games.

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Matthews leads the NHL with 59 goals, one from becoming the ninth player in NHL history with at least two 60-goal seasons. He scored 60 in 73 games in 2021-22, when he won the Rocket Richard Trophy, Hart Trophy and Ted Lindsay Award. He had one goal and nine shots in 23:44 of a 6-3 loss to the New Jersey Devils on Tuesday, which extended his point streak to five games (four goals, seven assists).

He missed one game this season with illness, a 7-0 win against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Dec. 16.

“Of course, it’s an adjustment when your best player is out of the lineup,” Domi said, “when anybody is out of the lineup, but I think we’ve done a great job all year of guys stepping up when they have to, and we just have to continue to do that.”

Toronto defenseman Morgan Rielly will miss his second straight game with an upper-body injury.

“He just remains day to day,” Keefe said. “We’re hopeful he’s going to bounce back here. The one thing that is good is once he gets through this day or two here, it’s not going to be a lingering situation. It’s not going to be an injury that’s ongoing. Once he’s past it, he’s past it so we just need to give him some time.”

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Canucks place goalie Thatcher Demko on long-term injured list

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The Vancouver Canucks have placed all-star goalie Thatcher Demko on the long-term injured reserve list retroactively.

“It’s just cap related,” coach Rick Tocchet said after practice Wednesday. “We get some cap relief, that’s all it is.”

The 28-year-old netminder has been considered week to week since being sidelined with a lower-body injury midway through Vancouver’s 5-0 win over the Winnipeg Jets on March 9.

That injury designation hasn’t changed, Tocchet said.

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Demko boasts a 34-18-2 record this season, with a .917 save percentage, a 2.47 goals-against average and five shutouts.

Casey DeSmith has taken over the starting job for Vancouver, going 3-2-1 since Demko’s injury. He has a .899 save percentage on the season with a 2.73 goals-against average and one shutout.

The earliest Demko could be back in the Canucks’ lineup is April 6 against the Kings in Los Angeles.

He’s expected to be a key piece as Vancouver (45-19-8) prepares for its first playoff appearance since the COVID-shortened 2019-20 campaign.

Canucks general manager Patrik Allvin also announced Wednesday that the club has called up forward Arshdeep Bains from the Abbotsford Canucks of the American Hockey League.

“I’d like to see where [Bains is] at,” Tocchet said, noting he isn’t sure whether the 23-year-old winger will slot into the lineup when the Canucks host the Dallas Stars on Thursday.

WATCH | Bains makes NHL debut

 

Surrey, B.C.’s Arshdeep Bains makes Canucks debut

1 month ago

Duration 2:20

Arshdeep Bains from Surrey, B.C., has made his NHL debut with the Vancouver Canucks Tuesday night against the Colorado Avalanche. As CBC’s Joel Ballard reports, it’s been a hard-fought journey for the hometown kid to the big leagues.

Bains played five games for the NHL team in February before being sent back to Abbotsford.

“He went down, he’s done a couple of things that we like, and he’s got some speed,” Tocchet said.

Vancouver may get another forward back in the lineup Thursday.

Dakota Joshua practised in a full-contact jersey on Wednesday for the first time since suffering an upper-body injury in Vancouver’s 4-2 win over the Blackhawks in Chicago on Feb. 13.

The physical winger, who’s set to become an unrestricted free agent this summer, has a career-high 26 points (13 goals, 13 assists) this season.

Sitting out injured “hasn’t been fun,” Joshua said.

“It feels like forever,” he said. “But at this point, that’s behind me and I’m moving forward.”

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