The Toronto Raptors have signed forward Yuta Watanabe to a standard NBA contract.
Tottenham fired Jose Mourinho on Monday after only 17 months in charge, and just as he was preparing to coach the club in the League Cup final.
The 7-foot-1 center chose the Zags over Minnesota, Ohio State, Michigan, North Carolina, Memphis, Georgetown and the G League.
Tom Brady and Tie Domi were kickin' it again this weekend as the sports world's most unexpected friendship continues to blossom before our eyes.
Smith made an incredible comeback from a 2018 leg injury.
Twelve top European soccer clubs on Sunday announced their plans to create a new league that could end the sport's global structure as we know it.
Jurors will deliberate following the conclusion of closing arguments on Monday.
William Nylander gives his thoughts on Alexander Edler's knee-on-knee hit on Zach Hyman in Vancouver's overtime win over the Maple Leafs on Sunday.
A battle between two London rivals, and two Serie A powers fighting for European qualification highlight this week's slate.
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If a golfer has been vaccinated, they'll no longer have to be tested before and during tournaments.
LAS VEGAS — Patrick Marleau said he received many congratulatory messages — from former teammates to the legendary Wayne Gretzky himself — as he approached eclipsing the great Gordie Howe's record for NHL games played. He talked about one message in particular, from Gordie's son Mark. The younger Howe said his dad would have been proud to see his record broken by another player from his home province of Saskatchewan. The 41-year-old Marleau was set to suit up for the 1,768th time Monday — setting a new mark for NHL longevity — when the San Jose Sharks faced the Vegas Golden Knights. "It's something that I'm pretty proud of, me being from Saskatchewan and Gordie being from Saskatchewan," Marleau, who hails from the small rural community of Aneroid, said before the record-setting game. "It's a pretty cool connection. "Part of the message that Mark gave to me yesterday was that it's kind of fitting that I am from Saskatchewan, and that (Gordie) would be very proud of me breaking the record tonight, being a small-town farm boy from Saskatchewan." Marleau's wife Christina and four sons are scheduled to be at the road game, which wouldn't be possible in San Jose, where fans still aren't allowed during the pandemic. "My wife, I couldn't have done it without her over all these years," Marleau said. "She's by far my biggest supporter. "I can't thank her enough and I can't thank the boys enough.: Since being picked second overall in the 1997 NHL draft by San Jose, Marleau has notched 566 goals and 630 assists. Apart from two seasons with the Toronto Maple Leafs and eight games with the Pittsburgh Penguins, Marleau has spent the rest of his career with San Jose. Marleau said by his fifth year in the NHL he had an idea that he would be in for a long professional career. "You've had some good years, you've played a number of games, but you're starting to feel you're getting a really good grasp on the hockey lifestyle and what you need to do to be successful," he said. Told that the Golden Knights had spoken in glowing terms about Marleau's achievement before the game, the veteran Sharks forward said he was humbled. "It's super special to have that respect, and to have guys say such kind words," Marleau said after a pause. "you battle with these guys day in and day out. They know the grind. They know what it takes to play in this league. And for them to show their respects and have all these kind words, it's very humbling." Flames winger Milan Lucic, who was set to be honoured Monday night at the Saddledome for reaching 1,000 career games, marvelled at Marleau's mark. "Pretty awesome," Lucic said. "It goes to show how durable and great of a player he's been since he entered the league in '97. "When you hit a thousand, you think back on how long and how hard it is to get to this mark. And then you add on another, what is it 760? That's another nine, 10 years there." Calgary coach Darryl Sutter, who was Marleau's first NHL coach with the Sharks, said setting the NHL games record is more than a testament to Marleau's durability. "Well, there's four or five things (that) obviously go into (the record)," Sutter said. "Number one you'd say longevity, but you'd have to say professionalism, training, healthy, play two positions, great attitude, great work ethic, not playing just for the money, playing because he loves the game. All those things go together. "It's just going to get added onto. Anyone who breaks Gordie's record, not including WHA games, it's significant." Marleau also helped Canada win two gold medals at the Olympics in 2010 in Vancouver and 2014 in Sochi. Howe also played an 419 games in the World Hockey Association, which don't count toward his NHL record. — With files from Donna Spencer in Calgary. This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 19, 2021. The Canadian Press
Jimmie Johnson made his IndyCar debut and Alex Palou won the season opener at Barber Motorsports Park.
CAPE TOWN, South Africa — Firefighters in Cape Town finally brought a wildfire under control Monday after it swept across the slopes of the city's famed Table Mountain, burning the university's historic library and forcing the evacuation of some neighbourhoods. The smouldering fire is being watched for flareups amid high winds and hot, dry conditions. City authorities said the fire, which started early Sunday, was “largely contained” more than 24 hours later. The fire had already badly damaged the library and other buildings on the campus of the University of Cape Town on Sunday, as well as other historic buildings nearby. Fueled by the high winds, it spread through the wild bush on the mountain slopes toward the city's centre and the surrounding residential areas. Devil’s Peak, one of the iconic points of the mountain which overlooks downtown Cape Town, was lit up by flames as the fire raged through the night. Residents of suburbs on the mountain slopes were evacuated early Monday as the blaze came dangerously close to their homes. Fire-fighting helicopters with water containers suspended on ropes had been scooping up water from swimming pools and the nearby ocean and dumping it on the fire. But they were grounded on Monday because of the strong winds. Four firefighters were injured battling the blaze on the slopes, said officials. The South African army had offered to help with some of its aircraft. “It’s a massive wind that’s blowing, and that is actually fueling the fire to spread in each and every direction,” Cape Town mayor Dan Plato said. A man in his 30s was arrested on suspicion of arson for setting additional fires, another city official said, but it's not clear if he was responsible for starting the blaze. The man was arrested after witnesses reported seeing three people moving through flames setting more fires, Cape Town safety and security official JP Smith said. Smith said the city had commissioned a forensic fire investigator to look into the cause. Wildfires on the mountains surrounding Cape Town are fairly common during the hot, dry summer months and are sometimes whipped up into huge, uncontrollable blazes by strong coastal winds. The temperature in Cape Town peaked at 35 degrees Celsius (95 Fahrenheit) Sunday and the winds hit the city overnight and Monday. About 250 city and volunteer firefighters were deployed to battle the fire, which damaged four buildings at the University of Cape Town. The Jagger Library's main reading room, where rare and unique African books and manuscripts were kept, was gutted and some of the “priceless” works had been lost, the university said. Others were saved after fire-proof doors activated and sealed off parts of the library. Library staff had watched “in horror” from a safe distance as the building burned, the library’s executive director, Ujala Satgoor, said. A windmill, built in 1796, and a restaurant near a memorial for the British colonial politician Cecil Rhodes also burned down. The university has been completely evacuated and shut down and meals were being provided for around 4,000 students who had to quickly leave the university campus and their residences, according to Gift of the Givers, a disaster response organization. Many of those students were taken to local hotels, the group said. Activities at the university were suspended until at least Wednesday. The group said it is also supplying food and water to the firefighters who had been working for more than 24 hours to control the fire. Heavy smoke hung over parts of Cape Town and people were advised to cover their mouths and noses with wet towels or rags while being evacuated. Dramatic videos and photos were posted on social media by people who came perilously close to the blaze on the slopes of Table Mountain, which is popular among runners and mountain bikers on the weekend. Lisette Lombard posted a video of herself escaping from the fire after going on a trail run on Sunday. She's seen running, breathless, as plumes of smoke rise close behind her. She said her car and others left in a parking lot were completely burnt out and destroyed and she eventually found help from a group of firefighters coming up the mountain slopes. “When they told me that it (the fire) is out of control, that is when the penny dropped on how dangerous the situation was and how lucky I had got,” she told South Africa's IOL news website. Gerald Imray, The Associated Press
The latest occupant of John Tortorella's famed doghouse is none other than Max Domi. Congrats!
The prop on who will go third in the draft will be one of the more popular ones on the board.
The most chaotic part of this war room might be the literal ram walking through.
After tackling a serious illness alone and to varying degrees, this next challenge the Canucks can confront together.
Sarah Pavan and Melissa Humana-Paredes probably wanted no part of a tiebreaker set against a familiar and hungry opponent. They swept fellow Canadians Heather Bansley and Brandie Wilkerson 2-0 (21-12, 22-20) in quarter-final action Monday at a beach volleyball World Tour stop in Cancun, Mexico after the latter extended the reigning world champions to a third and deciding set in a recent loss at Doha, Qatar. Pavan and Humana-Paredes, the FIVB world ranking leaders, improved to 7-2 in the head-to-head matchup and plan to compete in at least four more tournaments over the next two months. They will face Chantal Laboureur and Cinja Tillmann in a 7 p.m. ET semifinal on Monday after the Germans won 2-0 over Mariafe Artacho and Taliqua Clancy of Australia. WATCH | Canadians clinch 2nd consecutive semifinal berth: A month ago, Pavan and Humana-Paredes earned a silver medal at the Katara Beach World Cup in Doha, Qatar. On their way to the podium, they fought back from a first-set loss to Bansley and Wilkerson to prevail 21-18 and 15-9. WATCH | Pavan, Humana-Paredes lose in final at Doha event in March:
Trey Smith has no problem explaining his situation, no matter how many times he has to detail his history of blood clots. The Tennessee guard wants to make sure no NFL coach or general manager has any unanswered questions about his availability to play before the upcoming draft. “I'll explain it a million times if I have to,” Smith said. “Because it’s just something unique. It’s something that’s different. At the end of the day, I want to play football at a high level. I want to go to the NFL, so I have no issue whatsoever helping people understand what I went through and making them comfortable with it as well.” The 6-foot-5, 321-pound Smith played 42 games at Tennessee even while dealing with his condition. Blood clots in his lungs kept him out of spring practice in 2018, but blood thinners allowed him to eventually return. He missed the final five games that season when doctors worried Smith had a recurrence of blood clots before extended testing made them confident that hadn’t happened. Doctors and specialists put together a plan and medications that allowed him to start 12 of 13 games in 2019 at left guard, and he earned first-time All-Southeastern Conference honours. Smith was confident enough in the plan that he played in each of the Vols' 10 games during the 2020 season instead of opting out during the pandemic. He also was All-SEC for a second straight season. That's why Smith has no concerns about being able to play in the NFL. He says teams that do their research will understand, especially if they talk to the doctors and specialists Smith went across the country to see. “They’ll sort of see the plan we have set and (have) a lot more confidence in it as well,” Smith said. “I know that’s something we haven’t been completely open about in the past due to my own privacy. But at the end of the day, it’s a plan that will not only sustain itself in the NFL, but have a lot of success as well.” NFL scouts and coaches got a closer look at Smith both at the Senior Bowl in January and at Tennessee's pro day in March. Before the Senior Bowl, Smith got some feedback from former Tennessee offensive lineman Ramon Foster, who played 11 seasons at guard with the Pittsburgh Steelers. “So just being able to be in communication with him, and just get knowledge and information from a veteran that played in the NFL that long, I mean, I want to soak it up like a sponge, man,” Smith said. Teams have talked with Smith about playing both tackle and guard and whether he prefers the left or right side. At Tennessee's pro day, he ran a 5.1-second 40-yard dash, had a 31-inch vertical leap and did the three-cone drill in a time of 7.43 seconds to show off his athleticism. Smith also bench-pressed 225 pounds 32 times, raising more than $4,100 for Uplifting Athletes to help people dealing with rare diseases. He wound up doing two more reps than he hoped for, inspired by people he trained with. “For them, it means the world,” Smith said. “But for us as athletes, with the platform we have, I think it’s something we should do.” That's nothing new for Smith, who won the Torchbearer award for serving Tennessee with overall excellence. Smith also joined some fellow athletes in leading an anti-racism march on campus last August. Still, the first and biggest question about Smith is his health. “Hopefully it will be a way to pioneer ground for people with my issues, that have blood-clotting issues and things of that nature,” Smith said. “Then you look at people like David Andrews, Russell Okung, they’ve been playing and they had very similar issues that I’ve had. We’re talking about very high-level offensive linemen.” And Smith wants to be the next. ___ Follow Teresa M. Walker at https://twitter.com/TeresaMWalker ___ More AP NFL coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL and https://twitter.com/AP_NFL Teresa M. Walker, The Associated Press
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