Yahoo Sports
Norman Powell details halftime chat vs. Grizzlies
The Toronto Raptors gave up 70 first-half points against the Memphis Grizzlies and Norman Powell explained what was said at halftime to get the team focused defensively.
The Toronto Raptors gave up 70 first-half points against the Memphis Grizzlies and Norman Powell explained what was said at halftime to get the team focused defensively.
Raptors announce four more players have entered COVID-19 health protocols.
MONTREAL — Carey Price made 26 saves as Montreal defeated the Ottawa Senators 3-1 on Tuesday to give Canadiens rookie head coach Dominique Ducharme his first NHL victory.Jeff Petry and Brendan Gallagher, with a goal and an assist each, and Tyler Toffoli, into and empty net, scored for Montreal (10-6-5), which snapped a five-game winless streak.Artem Zub replied for Ottawa (8-16-1). Joey Daccord stopped 30 shots in his second NHL start for the Senators, who fell to 3-2-0 against the Canadiens this season following Monday's 5-1 victory over the Calgary Flames.Ottawa winger Drake Batherson saw his six-game goal streak, which tied a franchise record, come to an end.The Canadiens entered on an 0-2-3 run and had just one victory over their last eight (1-4-3). Ducharme replaced the fired Claude Julien last week in the wake of consecutive shootout and overtime losses to the Senators in Ottawa.Montreal blew a 3-1 lead before dropping a 6-3 decision to the Winnipeg Jets in Ducharme's NHL head coaching debut Thursday, but deserved a better fate in Saturday's rematch in the Manitoba capital — a 2-1 overtime defeat that saw the visitors dominate play much of the night.Price entered Tuesday with a 5-4-3 record to go along with an .888 save percentage and 3.13 goals-against average in 2020-21. Over his previous six starts, the former Hart and Vezina Trophy winner was 1-4-1 with an .870 save percentage.Montreal backup Jake Allen, meanwhile, is 4-2-2 with a .929 save percentage and 2.12 GAA this season.The Senators continue to occupy the North Division basement, but came into Tuesday having won six of their past nine games, with a 4-1-0 record over the last five contests, including overtime and shootout victories against the Canadiens in the nation's capital.The Canadiens opened the scoring at 9:26 of the second period on their first power play of the night. Petry fed the puck down low to Corey Perry, who in turn found Gallagher in front for him bury his seventh goal of the season and snap Montreal's ugly 1-for-14 slump with the man advantage.The home side got another power play off that sequence as Ottawa defenceman Erik Gudbranson was assessed a double-minor for high-sticking Gallagher in the face as he beat Daccord.The Senators killed off the first two minutes of the infraction, but Petry then blasted a shot off the post and in at 11:30 for with his seventh of the campaign, and first in nine games.Ottawa cut the deficit in half with 91 seconds left in the period on Zub's second when he fired low blocker on Price after Canadiens forward Joel Armia and Senators winger Tim Stutzle collided in the slot.Price made a nice save earlier in the second on Batherson after he stepped around Alexander Romanov and tried a shot upstairs on the shortside.Senators winger Austin Watson hit the post seven minutes into the third on his team's best chance to get the equalizer as Montreal could finally exhale with Toffoli's 13th into an empty net.Ottawa had some good chances on an early four-minute power play in the first when Armia cut Erik Brannstrom with a high stick, but Batherson's shot off Price's near post was as close as the Senators would come.Daccord, who made his only other start at the tail end of the 2018-19 season, stopped Romanov from the slot before making an even better save on Toffoli with the glove.Notes: Petry's seven goals leads all NHL defencemen. ... The Canadiens were minus top-6 winger Josh Anderson (lower-body injury) for the second straight game. ... The Senators gave starting goalie Matt Murray the night off as Filip Gustavsson dressed as Daccord's backup. ... Stutzle was named the NHL's rookie of the month for February after registering three goals and seven assists in 14 games. ... Ottawa announced centre Derek Stepan, who was hurt in last Tuesday's victory over Montreal, has a shoulder injury that requires season-ending surgery.This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 2, 2021.___Follow @JClipperton_CP on Twitter The Canadian Press
A deputy said that Woods could still face a criminal charge, contradicting an earlier statement from Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva.
The division-leading Toronto Maple Leafs are reportedly looking to bolster their depth at forward.
The incident occurred at the end of Toronto’s 3-0 win at Edmonton on Monday night.
Johnny Manziel's next goal: play on the PGA Tour.
Toronto Raptors coach Sergio Scariolo is excited to see who from the bench will be able to make the most of the opportunity over the next few games before the All-Star break.
The result came after the home side was blanked 4-0 by the Canucks the night before.
William Lou is joined by Vivek Jacob of CBC Sports to discuss the future of Norman Powell.
George Springer singled in his first at-bat as a Blue Jay, Lourdes Gurriel Jr. opened the scoring with a solo homer, and Toronto beat Philadelphia 4-2 in spring training action Tuesday.
Muhammad Yaseen said rodeo represented “an important thread” in Alberta’s culture.
Bill Walton claims Michael Jordan wanted to play for UCLA, not North Carolina, but the Bruins told him no. Is it true?
Ann Hebert was linked to her son's high-stakes sneaker business that depends on inside information to gain an edge on competition.
The March 18-25 tournament will be the third of four Curling Canada events held in a spectator-free, controlled environment in Calgary to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 virus.
Travis Dermott's golf-clap may be representative of the Maple Leafs pulling away from their competition, too.
Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby will miss at least one game after entering the NHL's COVID-19 protocol.
The car 5-year-old Ariel Young was in was "flattened" when Britt Reid's truck struck it at highway speed.
When Sam Rapoport envisioned conducting virtually the NFL's fifth annual Women's Career in Football Forum, she shuddered. How could the networking, hands-on communications and camaraderie the event has encompassed occur during the COVID-19 pandemic? “It seemed almost like an insurmountable challenge to accomplish what we normally do in previous years,” says Rapoport, the league's senior director of diversity and inclusion. “But interestingly, we feel like we accomplished more, engaged more executives, had a larger number of clubs and people involved. We set up a lot of sessions for the women to get to know each other, with a prep session we never have had before. “I was blown away how remarkable the women were on Zooms. Questions were well researched, and they were able to impress our executives. I think that helped to create an atmosphere of just a group of people talking football. You could put any group in this program.” The 2021 group of 40 women aspiring to NFL jobs as coaches, scouts and front office personnel spent two days last week remotely commingling with Commissioner Roger Goodell and his wife Jane; team owners Sheila Ford Hamp of the Lions and Dee Haslam of the Browns; a variety of general managers and coaches; and several women currently employed by teams. More than 100 opportunities, ranging from internships to full-time positions, have developed out of the forums. “I came into the forum with coaching experiences,” says Lori Locus t, who soon will be wearing a Super Bowl ring after helping Tampa Bay to the championship as the assistant defensive line coach. "Those internships are so valuable; you don’t know what you don’t know. The women sitting in the room (this year) at the forum are sitting with their future colleagues. They are collectively the next waves of what is coming into the league. "It was invaluable to know I was not doing it alone. We were all there to gather as much information and absorb it and put it to practice. That is the thing with internships, you make it what you get out of it." The Goodells have been champions of the forum since it launched and are thrilled with the results so far. The commissioner, addressing the contributions women are making on the sidelines and in the front office and across the scouting spectrum, told the 2021 group at the outset of last week's event: “The work they have put in and what they are giving to this game is truly remarkable. I hope you get to see all these people who have been in your seats before and you will be part of this panel in a different form soon." Attending for the second straight year was Sophia Lewin, a quality control coach for Princeton. Lewin earned an internship with the Bills in 2020, but it never happened because of the pandemic. She is hopeful to begin her NFL journey this year in Buffalo. Her duties at Princeton, which didn't play last season with the Ivy League shut down, have mostly been with the offence: meeting with quarterbacks; assisting in drills; working on the playbook; providing one-on-one time with the players. Basically, she says, “the utility piece.” From here, she hopes to move into the pros. “My career goal has been to be a head coach in the NFL,” Lewin notes, "but I also understand the need for flexibility in that. I want to work with the best possible people I can work with. I want to win Super Bowls — I would rather win 10 Super Bowls as a co-ordinator than be unsuccessful as a head coach. “The title does not matter to me, the impact is most important to me. Be successful on and off the field as a group.” Lewin witnessed real and potential success for everyone during each forum, last year's in person and the recent one virtually. From the advice of Hamp and Haslam to encouragement from coaches Bruce Arians — yeah, the Super Bowl winner — and Washington's Ron Rivera, to the words of Locust, Rivera assistant Jennifer King, Browns chief of staff Callie Brownson and many others working in the league. She also felt a swell of pride being among the 40 women invited to this year's forum. “Last year, I learned that the women who are participants are extremely important to connect to,” Lewis says. "It turned out some of my best friends were actually participants from last year and I learned who you connect with is not just people in the NFL. “It really is two days of empowerment and excitement. It is phenomenal. What Sam and Venessa (Hutchinson, NFL senior manager of football development) have built is really a bridge for us. Most of us are in the college ranks and trying to make it to the NFL in some way. The tone is set by them and they inspired me to keep working and represent them better. They are putting their trust in us to represent ourselves well.” ___ More AP NFL: https://apnews.com/NFL and https://twitter.com/AP_NFL Barry Wilner, The Associated Press
Instead of going out to dinner with his fiancee after coming home from practice, Brandon Carlo takes his dogs on long walks to get out of the house and enjoy some fresh air. “It’s nice that I can still do those things,” the Boston defenceman said. NHL players and their families are limited in what things they can do this season by virus protocols designed to keep them safe and games on track, and those rules go further than other leagues. There aren't NHL-approved restaurants to frequent on the road like in the NBA, players are limited to their home or the team hotel and the rink except for emergencies, so there isn't much to do outside of playing hockey. “Hockey’s our life, for sure,” Philadelphia's Kevin Hayes said. “It’s what we get paid to do. It’s how we make a living. But now that you actually can’t do anything else, it definitely makes you appreciate it more.” It has never been easier for players to say they're doing it for the love of the game, especially given that 20% of their paychecks are being held in escrow and 10% deferred to future years because of pandemic revenue losses. Already strict protocols were updated in February to “strongly recommended that household members limit their discretionary activities outside of the home” and encourage things like grocery and food delivery to reduce public contact. Restricting some personal freedom, players say, is a worthwhile price to pay to get to earn a six- or seven-figure salary. "It’s tough, a little bit, but we’re so lucky to be able to come into the rink and do what we love to do and be working," Edmonton captain and league-leading scorer Connor McDavid said. “We don’t forget about that.” It's still an unnatural existence, confined to the rink and the hotel on the road and encouraged not to leave home much the rest of the time. Though, as Stanley Cup-winning Tampa Bay forward Tyler Johnson pointed out, “This is way better than the bubble life” that was required to complete the 2020 playoffs. Now, it's more of a balancing act for players, who know what they're missing and have their eyes on the prize this season. “You definitely miss the moments, especially with new guys, of being able to go out to dinner, have a couple drinks and just interact with their spouses, as well,” Carlo said. “That’s definitely missed and it’s been a hard adjustment, but for the most part during the year, I feel like we’re pretty dialed in to hockey and we kind of just want to get our rest when we can. On those days off, it definitely becomes longer." Calgary captain Mark Giordano said, "Trying to find ways to break up your day is the No. 1 challenge” this season. Washington's Nicklas Backstrom said the activities vary to pass the time alone in hotel rooms: "There’s video games, movies, stuff like that. You’ve just got to adjust to it, I think, for now.” Adjust but not complain. McDavid and Giordano said there will be none of that, given the havoc the virus has wreaked on life and work around the globe. And the focus on hockey isn't such a bad thing with so many games packed into a condensed schedule. “We’re so busy with games every other day, so a lot of the times we’re just trying to prepare for that next one and getting your body rested and recovered,” Johnson said. “Even if we could be doing stuff, I don’t know how much we really would be.” NO ROAD BLUES The St. Louis Blues have won eight of their first 10 road games. Defenceman Justin Faulk said even though players haven't being able to enjoy a postgame “soda” together and hang out away from the rink, the on-ice product is working. “Our team’s comfortable being on the road,” Faulk said. “It doesn’t bother us. ... You’re very limited on what you can do, but we’re still trying to enjoy our time around each other and try to create as much of team chemistry as we can on the road with what we’re limited to.” SCUFFLING SABRES The Buffalo Sabres are in yet another seemingly annual tailspin, and no one appears to have an explanation of how they might escape it. “I don’t have a cliché answer for you,” captain Jack Eichel said Sunday, after the Sabres dropped back-to-back 3-0 shutouts to the Philadelphia Flyers last weekend. “If we had answers, I think we would be spitting them out.” The Sabres entered Tuesday night on a 2-7-1 skid, ranking last in the NHL with 21 five-on-five goals and 42 overall in 19 games. Second-year coach Ralph Krueger is running out of answers, and his messaging has been placed in question. With first-time general manager Kevyn Adams declining media requests, speculation is rising regarding Krueger’s status, and whether Eichel might be on the trade block. COVID UPDATE The NHL on Tuesday reached a season best with three players on the COVID protocol list. All three are stars — Pittsburgh's Sidney Crosby, Nashville's Ryan Johansen and San Jose's Tomas Hertl — but the rules appear to be working to cut down on cases and outbreaks. “As I said to our players, we can do all the right things and this kind of stuff could happen,” Penguins coach Mike Sullivan said. “The other thing I would say is just because someone’s on the COVID protocol list doesn’t necessarily mean that they have COVID." GAME OF THE WEEK The first game in Philadelphia with fans this season comes Sunday when the Flyers host the Capitals in front of just over 3,000 — plus Gritty. LEADERS (Through Monday) Goals: Auston Matthews (Toronto), 18; Assists: Connor McDavid (Edmonton), 26; Points: McDavid, 40; Ice Time: Brent Burns (San Jose), 27:30; Wins: Andrei Vasilevskiy (Tampa Bay), 12; Goals-Against Average: Petr Mrazek (Carolina), 0.99; Save Percentage: Mrazek, .955. ___ AP Hockey Writer John Wawrow contributed. ___ Follow AP Hockey Writer Stephen Whyno on Twitter at https://twitter.com/SWhyno ___ More AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/NHL and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports Stephen Whyno, The Associated Press
LOS ANGELES — Dario Šaric scored 10 of his 21 points in the fourth quarter, Mikal Bridges added 19 and the Phoenix Suns overcame Devin Booker's ejection for a 114-104 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday night. Booker scored 17 points before getting ejected for arguing with 7:10 left in the third quarter. The Suns (23-11) still took charge down the stretch and cruised to their 15th victory in 18 games while also moving past the defending champions (24-12) into second place in the Western Conference by winning percentage. LeBron James scored 38 points for Los Angeles, which has lost five of seven with mounting injury problems. Dennis Schröder added 17 points, but the Lakers couldn't keep up without regulars Anthony Davis, Kyle Kuzma and Marc Gasol. Kuzma was a late scratch with a bruised right heel, while Gasol missed his first game under the NBA's health and safety protocols. Booker was whistled for two technical fouls in remarkably rapid succession, resulting in the All-Star’s second ejection in just over five weeks. Moments before Booker's ejection, James and Lakers coach Frank Vogel got simultaneous technicals for arguing a no-call on Chris Paul. The Suns snapped their five-game skid against the Lakers at Staples Center since November 2017. James, who led the NBA in assists last season, repeatedly scored in the paint against Phoenix while taking an uncharacteristic off-ball role on many possessions. His highest-scoring performance since Jan. 25 still wasn't enough for the Lakers. TIP-INS Suns: Booker replaced Davis among the NBA's All-Star selections last week. ... Šaric was questionable before the game with a right ankle sprain. Lakers: Talen Horton-Tucker had 16 points, one off his career high. ... Davis has missed eight straight games with a calf injury. ... Alex Caruso had seven points and six rebounds before leaving late with neck spasms. ... Damian Jones played just seven minutes against his former team despite the Lakers' lack of a centre. He is managing a lower back strain. UP NEXT Suns: Host Warriors on Thursday. Lakers: At Kings on Wednesday. ___ More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports Greg Beacham, The Associated Press