The veteran goaltender was recalled on an emergency basis for Thursday’s game against the Ottawa Senators due to backup Ilya Samsonov‘s illness, then found himself thrust into action late in a tight game when the Leafs’ breakout No. 1, Joseph Woll, needed two teammates to help him off the ice.
“Yeah, it’s brutal. You don’t wish that upon anyone,” teammate Mitch Marner said, following Toronto’s bittersweet 4-3 road victory. “Hopefully news comes back somewhat positive.”
The early outlook is not.
Crunching his lanky frame to make one of the more innocuous of his 29 saves during a hectic 31-shot night, Woll lurched forward in palpable pain. An audible gasp rose from the well-represented Leafs fans inside the Canadian Tire Centre.
Following a lengthy conversation with athletic therapist Paul Ayotte, Woll lumbered his arms around the shoulders of Ryan Reaves and T.J. Brodie, who helped him off the ice.
The goaltender couldn’t place weight on his left leg and was later spotted leaving the rink on crutches.
“It’s unfortunate, right?” head coach Sheldon Keefe said.
“He’s been playing so well, and he’s building such great momentum here on his season and his career. It’s a setback here. Now he’s going to miss time for sure. We’ll determine the extent of it once we get home. But, obviously, he’s the big reason why we get two points here tonight.”
Absolutely.
Making his fifth consecutive start, Woll was one of the only Leafs dialled in from puck drop, as the Senators pressed and swarmed, and the visitors had as much difficulty exiting their zone as downtown commuters do reaching the CTC parking lot in rush hour.
He stoned Mathieu Joseph on a breakaway, denied Josh Norris in the blue paint, and supplied Vladimir Tarasenko with nightmare fuel with a pair of 10-bell, cross-crease glove flashes on two-on-ones.
“Those two on the backside could’ve easily been goals — and he owned him,” said William Nylander, the winning goal scorer.
Added Morgan Rielly: “We hope he’s OK. He’s been playing outstanding for us.”
Maple Leafs’ Woll stretches out before flashing the leather to rob Tarasenko of sure goal
Woll’s steady performance, perfect shootout record, and excellent .916 save percentage have played a huge role in papering over Toronto’s defensive injuries and inconsistent efforts.
Consider: This team’s past eight games have been decided by a single goal. Dressing a netminder who can come up with a clutch stop or two, which Ottawa did not have Thursday, can be all the difference in the muddled middle of the Atlantic Division race.
Even prior to Woll’s injury, goaltending depth was a topic on Keefe’s mind.
“It’s six games in the next 10 days with nine in 17 leading up to Christmas here,” the coach noted at morning skate.
“So, we’re gonna need two goaltenders for certain. Maybe three.”
Gulp.
Well, let’s talk about that third-stringer.
Still loitering on the UFA market in August, the 33-year-old Jones accepted a paltry $875,000, one-year deal from Leafs GM Brad Treliving for this very occasion.
Armed with 445 games of regular-season experience, plus multiple deep playoff runs during his San Jose Sharks prime, an admittedly “little stiff” Jones was composed in his 10-minute relief appearance, stopping nine of 10 pucks fired his way and withstanding the Sens’ pulled-goalie push.
Clearing waivers before opening night and splitting time with Toronto’s goalie prospects on the farm, Jones has played the role of solid teammate while getting humbled by a pay cut and his first stint in the AHL in a decade.
Healthy and patient, the North Vancouver native has been granted just five scattered appearances with the Marlies while busying himself with more practice time than a concert pianist.
“Just an awesome human being. Great dude to have around. Brings some good energy,” Marner said of Jones. “He knows how to win hockey games, and he’s done it for a long time as well. So, it’s great to have him — especially in these moments.”
‘He’s going to miss time for sure’: Maple Leafs’ Keefe on Woll injury
Had Samsonov not been smacked with an illness this week, Jones wouldn’t have even been on the bench. Now, suddenly, it appears he’ll be leaned upon during Toronto’s busy December — albeit at the cost of Woll’s remarkable run.
“It’s tough to watch,” Jones said. “You don’t want to see that. But just tried to get my head in the game and get ready to go.
“Sometimes it helps. You’re not thinking too much… You just stop thinking, and then you’re just reacting to the play.”
How the Maple Leafs’ new tandem of Samsonov and Jones reacts to Woll’s undetermined absence could have a great impact on the team’s placement in the standings.
Keefe maintains that his faith in Jones is high and that he’s handled his newfound status as the club’s third goalie with “tremendous” professionalism.
“That’s why you signed veteran depth. We were fortunate when he got through waivers and he remained a part of our organization — and it’s for situations like this,” Keefe said.
“[Jones] comes in and does the job and makes sure we get our win. So, gives me confidence. Whether it’s the injuries we’ve faced on defence or what we went through here tonight, guys have found ways to rise above those things.”
Fox’s Fast Five
• Very cool to show up at a Senators weekday morning skate and see Daniel Alfredsson, Chris Neil, and Jacques Martin milling about. Recently, the organization has done a fantastic job of keeping some of its most esteemed alumni involved.
• Ottawa’s No. 1 defenceman, Thomas Chabot, played the full 82 last season but has appeared in just nine of his club’s 21 games this fall. After the game, the Senators placed him on LTIR and said he is expected to miss a month with a leg injury.
“I just feel for him,” said Jacob Chychrun. “He’s got a couple unlucky breaks, and I feel for him. I’ve been through it; I know it’s never easy being out. I know he wants to play more than anybody. And we just got to hold the fort down for him till he’s back.”
Jacob Bernard-Docker, 23, couldn’t make this team out of camp. Now, he’s operating on the Sens’ top pair. Bernard-Docker notched his first career goal Thursday.
“He went through waivers, and here he is. Didn’t pout about it. Got right back to work,” D.J. Smith says. “He’s giving us a chance to win every night.”
• Former Senator Bobby Ryan told JD Bunkis on Thursday that during his Battle of Ontario days, Chris Neil was undisputedly the teammate who got most jacked up to beat the Leafs: “He was putting on the foil every time.”
• Bit of a Nick-picky thing considering how little the second unit gets deployed, but it’s a little curious that Nick Robertson — whose greatest weapon is his shot — can’t get time on PP2.
I suppose Keefe wants to reward the more trustworthy veteran, Calle Järnkrok (not a bad shot himself), with some offensive ice time.
• John Tavares is up to 997 career points. The Maple Leafs are in Long Island on Monday.
TORONTO – Singles star Leylah Fernandez and doubles specialist Gabriela Dabrowski will anchor Canada’s five-player lineup when the team tries to defend its Billie Jean King Cup title in mid-November.
The 26th-ranked Fernandez, the 2021 U.S. Open finalist from Laval, Que., is the lone Canadian in the top 100 of the WTA Tour’s singles rankings.
Dabrowski, from Ottawa, is ranked fourth on the doubles list. The 2023 U.S. Open women’s doubles champion won mixed doubles bronze with Felix Auger-Aliassime at the recent Paris Olympics.
Marina Stakusic of Mississauga, Ont., returns after a breakout performance last year, capped by her singles win in Canada’s 2-0 victory over Italy in the final. Vancouver’s Rebecca Marino is also back and Bianca Andreescu, the 2019 U.S. Open champion from Mississauga, Ont., returns to the squad for the first time since 2022.
“Winning the Billie Jean King Cup in 2023 was a dream come true for us, and not only that, but I feel like we made a statement to the world about the strength of this nation when it comes to tennis,” Canada captain Heidi El Tabakh said Monday in a release. “Once again, we have a very strong team this year with Bianca joining Leylah, Gaby, Rebecca and Marina, making it an extremely powerful team that is more than capable of going all the way.
“At the end of the day, our goal is to make Canada proud, and we’ll do our best to bring the same level of effort and excitement that we had in last year’s finals.”
Fernandez, who beat Jasmine Paolini to clinch Canada’s first-ever title at the competition, is ranked No. 42 in doubles.
Canada, which received an automatic berth as defending champion, will play the winner of the first-round tie between Great Britain and Germany on Nov. 17 at Malaga’s Martin Carpena Arena.
Australia, Italy and wild-card entry Czechia also received first-round byes. The tournament, which continues through Nov. 20, also includes host Spain, Slovakia, the United States, Poland, Japan and Romania.
Stakusic is up 27 spots to No. 128 in the latest world singles rankings. Marino is at No. 134 and Andreescu, the 2019 U.S. Open champion, is ranked 167th.
Canada will look to become the first team since Czechia in 2016 to successfully defend its Billie Jean King Cup title.
Malaga will also host the Nov. 19-24 Davis Cup Final 8. The Canadian men qualified over the weekend with a 2-1 victory over Great Britain in Manchester.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 16, 2024.
PITTSBURGH – Sidney Crosby plans to remain a Pittsburgh Penguin for at least three more years.
The Penguins announced on Monday that they re-signed the 37-year-old from Cole Harbour, N.S., to a two-year contract extension that has an average annual value of US$8.7 million. The deal runs through the 2026-27 season.
Crosby was eligible to sign an extension on July 1 with him entering the final season of a 12-year, $104.4-million deal that carries an $8.7-million salary cap hit.
At the NHL/NHLPA player media tour in Las Vegas last Monday, he said things were positive and he was optimistic about a deal getting done.
The three-time Stanley Cup champion is coming off a 42-goal, 94-point campaign that saw him finish tied for 12th in the league scoring race.
Crosby has spent all 19 of his NHL seasons in Pittsburgh, amassing 592 goals and 1,004 assists in 1,272 career games.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 16, 2024.
MONTREAL – Tadej Pogacar was so dominant on Sunday, Canada’s Michael Woods called it a race for second.
Pogacar, a three-time Tour de France champion from Slovenia, pedalled to a resounding victory at the Grand Prix Cycliste de Montreal.
The UAE Team Emirates leader crossed the finish line 24 seconds ahead of Spain’s Pello Bilbao of Bahrain — Victorious to win the demanding 209.1-kilometre race on a sunny, 28 C day in Montreal. France’s Julian Alaphilippe of Soudal Quick-Step was third.
“He’s the greatest rider of all time, he’s a formidable opponent,” said Woods, who finished 45 seconds behind the leader in eighth. “If you’re not at your very, very best, then you can forget racing with him, and today was kind of representative of that.
“He’s at such a different level that if you follow him, it can be lights out.”
Pogacar slowed down before the last turn to celebrate with the crowd, high-five fans on Avenue du Parc and cruise past the finish line with his arms in the air after more than five hours on the bike.
The 25-year-old joined Belgium’s Greg Van Avermaet as the only multi-time winners in Montreal after claiming the race in 2022. He also redeemed a seventh-place finish at the Quebec City Grand Prix on Friday.
“I was disappointed, because I had such good legs that I didn’t do better than seventh,” Pogacar said. “To bounce back after seventh to victory here, it’s just an incredible feeling.”
It’s Pogacar’s latest win in a dominant year that includes victories at the Tour de France and Giro d’Italia.
Ottawa’s Woods (Israel Premier-Tech) tied a career-best in front of the home crowd in Montreal, but hoped for more after claiming a stage at the Spanish Vuelta two weeks ago.
“I wanted a better result,” the 37-year-old rider said. “My goal was a podium, but at the same time I’m happy with the performance. In bike racing, you can’t always get the result you want and I felt like I raced really well, I animated the race, I felt like I was up there.”
Pogacar completed the 17 climbs up and down Mount Royal near downtown in five hours 28 minutes 15 seconds.
He made his move with 23.3 kilometres to go, leaving the peloton in his dust as he pedalled into the lead — one he never relinquished.
Bilbao, Alaphilippe, Alex Aranburu (Movistar Team) and Bart Lemmen (Visma–Lease) chased in a group behind him, with Bilbao ultimately separating himself from the pack. But he never came close to catching Pogacar, who built a 35-second lead with one lap left to go.
“It was still a really hard race today, but the team was on point,” Pogacar said. “We did really how we planned, and the race situation was good for us. We make it hard in the last final laps, and they set me up for a (takeover) two laps to go, and it was all perfect.”
Ottawa’s Derek Gee, who placed ninth in this year’s Tour de France, finished 48th in Montreal, and called it a “hard day” in the heat.
“I think everyone knows when you see Tadej on the start line that it’s just going to be full gas,” Gee said.
Israel Premier-Tech teammate Hugo Houle of Sainte-Perpétue, Que., was 51st.
Houle said he heard Pogacar inform his teammates on the radio that he was ready to attack with two laps left in the race.
“I said then, well, clearly it’s over for me,” Houle said. “You see, cycling isn’t that complicated.”
Australia’s Michael Matthews won the Quebec City GP for a record third time on Friday, but did not finish in Montreal. The two races are the only North American events on the UCI World Tour.
Michael Leonard of Oakville, Ont., and Gil Gelders and Dries De Bondt of Belgium broke away from the peloton during the second lap. Leonard led the majority of the race before losing pace with 45 kilometres to go.
Only 89 of 169 riders from 24 teams — including the Canadian national team — completed the gruelling race that features 4,573 metres in total altitude.
Next up, the riders will head to the world championships in Zurich, Switzerland from Sept. 21 to 29.
Pogacar will try to join Eddy Merckx (1974) and Stephen Roche (1987) as the only men to win three major titles in a season — known as the Triple Crown.
“Today gave me a lot of confidence, motivation,” Pogacar said. “I think we are ready for world championships.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 15, 2024.
