Thompson Sports News Archives for 2021-06

Kucherov leads Lightning over Canadiens 5-1 in Game 1

Playoff scoring leader Nikita Kucherov had two goals and an assist and Andrei Vasilevskiy finished with 18 saves to outplay Carey Price and lead the Tampa Bay Lightning to a 5-1 victory over the Montreal Canadiens in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final.

 

Kucherov put the defending champs up 3-1 two minutes into the third period. He scored again at 11:25 of the third, then assisted on Steven Stamkos' power-play goal that made it 5-1 with just over a minute to go.

 

The Canadiens had not given up a power-play goal in an NHL playoff-record 13 consecutive games. Game 2 is Wednesday night in Tampa.

Eight NBA players on Canada's team for its last-chance Tokyo Olympic qualifier

Eight NBA players have been named to arguably the most talented Canadian men's basketball team in history for this week's last-chance Olympic qualifying tournament.

 

The Canadians, who tip off Tuesday against Greece, must win the six-country tournament to clinch their first Olympic berth since the 2000 Games in Sydney.

 

Nickeil Alexander-Walker (New Orleans), RJ Barrett (New York), Luguentz Dort (Oklahoma City), Cory Joseph (Detroit), Trey Lyles (San Antonio), Mychal Mulder and Andrew Wiggins (Golden State), and Dwight Powell (Dallas) make up the NBA contingent.

 

The 12-man roster is rounded out by Trae Bell-Haynes, Anthony Bennett, Aaron Doornekamp, and Andrew Nicholson.

 

Purdue's Zach Edey and Gonzaga's Andrew Nembhard had been in camp but weren't on the final roster.

 

Edey is expected to be with the U19 team for the FIBA world championships in Latvia.

Canadiens return to Cup Final after 3-2 OT win over Vegas

Artturi Lehkonen scored 1:39 into overtime, Carey Price stopped 37 shots and the Montreal Canadiens advanced to the Stanley Cup Final for the first time in 28 years following a 3-2 win over the Vegas Golden Knights.

 

Cole Caufield and captain Shea Weber also scored, and the Canadiens eliminated the Golden Knights in Game 6 of their semifinal series.

 

Considered mere after-thoughts after entering the playoffs with the worst record, Montreal has won 11 of 13 since falling behind 3-1 to Toronto in its first-round series.

 

Montreal will make its playoff-leading 35th Stanley Cup Final appearance with a shot to add to its 24 championships.

 

Montreal will face the winner of the semifinal series between the defending champion Lightning and New York Islanders. Game 7 is at Tampa Bay on Friday.

Canadian Bianca Andreescu wins opener at Wimbledon tune-up event

Canada's Bianca Andreescu is heading to the second round of the Viking International.

 

The third-seeded Andreescu, from Mississauga, Ont., beat American Christine McHale 6-4, 2-6, 6-2 in the first round of the WTA Tour 500 grass-court tournament on Tuesday.

 

It marked Andreescu's first career WTA Tour main-draw victory on a grass court.

 

Andreescu won 68 per cent of points when she got her first serve in against the 96th-ranked McHale and saved four of eight break points.

 

It was the seventh-ranked Andreescu's first win in her past three tournaments.

 

The Canadian will face the winner of a match between Anett Kontaveit of Estonia and Svetlana Kuznetsova of Russia in the second round of the Wimbledon tune-up event.

Tokyo Olympics to allow local fans - but with strict limits

A limited number of local fans will be allowed to attend the Tokyo Olympics.

 

The decision announced Monday comes as organizers try to save some of the spirit of the Games where even cheering has been banned.

 

Organizers set a limit of 50% capacity, up to a maximum of 10,000 fans, for each Olympic venue.

 

Officials said that if coronavirus cases rise again the rules could be changed and fans could still be barred all together.

 

The decision comes as opposition among Japanese to holding the Games in July remains high, though may be softening, and as new infections in Tokyo have begun to subside.

Frazier snaps tie, Yankees come back to beat Blue Jays 6-5

BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) - Clint Frazier snapped an eighth-inning tie with a pinch-hit double and the New York Yankees hit three solo homers in a much-needed 6-5 win over the Toronto Blue Jays on Tuesday night.

 

Frazier hit a grounder inside the third-base line to score pinch-runner Tyler Wade from second as the Yankees completed a comeback from a 5-2 deficit and won for the third time in 10 games. The game was played before a crowd of 7,145, mostly in support of New York.

 

Chris Gittens homered for his first major league hit, Gary Sanchez had two hits, including a leadoff homer in the second inning, and Brett Gardner added a leadoff shot in the seventh that brought the Yankees to 5-4.

 

Bo Bichette homered and had a two-run single for the Blue Jays. Santiago Espinal added three hits for Toronto, which has lost four of six.

 

Jonathan Loaisiga (6-2) worked one inning to earn the win. Tim Mayza (1-1) allowed a leadoff single to Miguel Andujar in the eighth and took the loss. Aroldis Chapman worked a perfect ninth for his 13th save.

 

Toronto starter Hyun Jin Ryu limited New York to five hits over six innings, but issued a season-high four walks.

Canada defeats Haiti, advances to final round of CONCACAF World Cup qualifying

BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. - Helped by an own goal and strikes by Cyle Larin and Junior Hoilett, Canada dispatched Haiti 3-0 on the night and 4-0 on aggregate to advance to the final round of World Cup qualifying in CONCACAF.

 

The Canadian men, who last reached the final qualifying round in 1996-97 in the lead-up to France '98, now join the heavyweights in CONCACAF, which covers North and Central America and the Caribbean. The eight-country final round includes Mexico (ranked No. 11) the U.S. (No. 20), Jamaica (No. 45), Costa Rica (No. 50) and Honduras (No. 67), who received byes as the top five teams in the region.

 

The 70th-ranked Canadians joined them the hard way, slogging through two rounds and six games in qualifying. They have earned themselves at least 14 more qualifying matches.

 

Canada came into Tuesday night's match at SeatGeek Stadium against No. 83 Haiti needing a win or a draw to advance in the wake of Saturday's 1-0 win in Port-au-Prince on a 14th-minute goal by Larin.

 

Canada came on Tuesday as the first half wore on, with a string of late chances off set pieces. But Haiti, despite missing some players who were unable to make the trip, somehow survived the pressure to go into the changing rooms scoreless at halftime with Montreal-born goalkeeper Josue Duverger standing tall.

 

But a 46th-minute blunder by Duverger extended Canada's aggregate lead when the 'keeper misplayed a routine back pass from Kevin LaFrance. Duverger missed the ball with his attempted first touch and, when he went to control it with his right foot, it bounced in off his left as Jonathan David steamed towards him.

Canada routs Colombia 74-40 at AmeriCup women's basketball tournament

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico - Kayla Alexander had a game-high 14 points and nine rebounds as Canada remained unbeaten at the FIBA AmeriCup women's basketball tournament with a 74-40 win over Colombia on Tuesday.

 

Fourth-ranked Canada finished the preliminary stage in top spot in Group A at 4-0 and will face the Dominican Republic in Thursday's quarterfinals.

 

The final is Saturday.

 

The Canadians are playing in their first tournament in 16 months as they tune up for the upcoming Tokyo Olympics.

 

Alexander was efficient on offence, shooting six-of-eight from the floor, and added three steals on defence.

 

Laeticia Amihere and Shaina Pellington added 10 points each for Canada, while Jamie Scott and Miranda Ayim led the team with four assists each.

Canadian Leylah Annie Fernandez advances to second round at WTA Tour event

BIRMINGHAM, United Kingdom - Canada's Leylah Annie Fernandez is heading to the second round of the Viking Classic Birmingham.

 

Fernandez, from Laval, Que., beat China's Wang Yafan in the first round of the WTA Tour 250 grass-court event on Tuesday.

 

The 66th-ranked Fernandez won 76.1 per cent of points when she got her first serve in, well above her opponent's rate (57.5 per cent).

 

It was Fernandez's first match of the grass-court season. She lost in the second round of the French Open.

 

Meanwhile, Montreal's Felix Auger-Aliassime beat Poland's Hubert Hurkacz 6-3, 7-5 in the first round of the Noventi Open in Halle, Germany on Tuesday.

 

It was the second win in as many matches for the 21st-ranked Auger-Aliassime against the 17th-ranked Hurkacz.

CFL to kick off 2021 regular-season schedule with Winnipeg-Hamilton Grey Cup rematch

TORONTO - The CFL has scheduled a Grey Cup rematch for its return.

The CFL unveiled its 14-game regular season Tuesday, a day after the board of governors voted to resume play Aug., 5. The league didn't play in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

 

The CFL's first game on opening night will feature the Hamilton Tiger-Cats visiting the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. The last league game played was between the two teams, with the Bombers downing the Ticats 33-12 in the '19 Grey Cup contest.

 

There will be no exhibition games this year.

 

The newly renamed Edmonton Elks will play their first game Aug. 7 hosting the Ottawa Redblacks. All four East Division teams will play the first two weeks of the season in Western Canada as some West Division clubs are expected to be able to host fans sooner and in greater numbers as the season gets underway.

 

The '21 schedule will also feature the traditional Labour Day matchups. The Redblacks will host the Montreal Alouettes on Sept. 3 while Winnipeg will visit the Saskatchewan Roughriders on Sept. 5.

Here's a list of Canadian NHL arena name sponsors

The Winnipeg Jets will play their home games at the Canada Life Centre starting July 1, when the insurance provider begins its 10-year contract at the arena currently known as Bell MTS Place.

 

Here's a look at the corporate partners at Canada's six other NHL arenas, when those names took effect and the previous name:

 

Montreal: Bell Centre, 2002 (Molson Centre)

 

Toronto: Scotiabank Arena, 2018 (Air Canada Centre)

 

Ottawa: Canadian Tire Centre, 2013 (Scotiabank Place)

 

Edmonton: Rogers Place, 2016 (opened under this name)

 

Calgary: Scotiabank Saddledome, 2010 (Pengrowth Saddledome)

 

Vancouver: Rogers Arena, 2010 (General Motors Place)

 

 

CFL votes to start 2021 season in August after meeting

The CFL is going ahead with its 2021 season.

 

The league's board of governors have voted unanimously in favour of an amended collective bargaining agreement and starting the '21 campaign Aug. 5.

 

The CFL did not play in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

 

The league unveiled plans in November for a full 18-game season that was to have started in June but later pushed back the start to August and reduced the number of games to 14.

 

The Grey Cup game was also pushed back from Nov. 21 to Dec. 12 in Hamilton.

Keuchel, Grandal lead White Sox past Blue Jays 5-2

CHICAGO (AP) - Dallas Keuchel pitched six effective innings, Yasmani Grandal homered and the Chicago White Sox beat the Toronto Blue Jays 5-2 on Thursday night.

 

Led by Keuchel, Chicago closed out a 5-2 homestand and improved its AL Central lead to a season-high 4 1/2 games over idle Cleveland. Adam Engel also went deep, and reigning AL MVP Jose Abreu hit two RBI doubles.

 

It was the first game for the White Sox since they placed second baseman Nick Madrigal on the injured list with a torn right hamstring. Madrigal got hurt when he tried to beat out a grounder in the seventh inning of Wednesday night's 6-2 loss to Toronto.

 

Chicago has been hit hard by injuries this year, but it keeps rolling along.

The loss of Madrigal is “a big blow, but the games still count and we have to go forward,” manager Tony La Russa said.

 

Marcus Semien and Lourdes Gurriel Jr. each drove in a run for Toronto, which lost for the fourth time in six games. Hyun Jin Ryu (5-4) pitched six innings of three-run ball in his second straight loss.

Armia, Price lead the way as Canadiens down Jets 5-1 to take 3-0 series stranglehold

MONTREAL - Joel Armia had two goals and an assist, Carey Price made 26 saves, and the Montreal Canadiens defeated the Winnipeg Jets 5-1 on Sunday to take a 3-0 lead in their second-round playoff series.

 

Corey Perry, Artturi Lehkonen and Nick Suzuki also scored for the Canadiens.

 

Adam Lowry replied for the Jets, who got 28 stops from Connor Hellebuyck.

 

After storming back from a 3-1 deficit to stun the heavily favoured Toronto Maple Leafs in the opening round, Montreal can wrap up this best-of-seven North Division matchup Monday night back at the Bell Centre.

 

Having swept Connor McDavid's Edmonton Oilers in the first round, the Jets will simply be looking to force a Game 5 on Wednesday in Winnipeg.

 

The Canadiens, who haven't trailed on the scoreboard since losing Game 4 against Toronto and won their sixth straight post-season contest, lead a series 3-0 for the first time since 2015.

Altuve leadoff HR, Garcia wins 5th in row, Astros top Jays

Jose Altuve led off the game with a home run, rookie Luis Garcia earned his fifth straight win and the Houston Astros beat Toronto 6-3 Sunday, finishing the Blue Jays' first homestand of the season in Buffalo.

 

Chas McCormick also homered, Yuli Gurriel had three hits and Alex Bregman scored twice as Houston won for the sixth time in eight games.

 

The Blue Jays went 3-2 to open their residency at the home of their Triple-A affiliate.

 

Toronto was 10-11 while hosting home games at its spring training site in Dunedin, Florida, to begin the year.

 

Garcia (5-3). battling a cold which limited him to 79 pitches, allowed one run and three hits in six innings.

 

The left-hander struck out eight, raising his season total to 68 to tie for the lead among American League rookies with Detroit's Tarik Skubal.

Jets forward Scheifele suspended four games for hit on Canadiens forward Evans

Winnipeg Jets forward Mark Scheifele has been suspended four games for his crushing hit on Jake Evans of the Montreal Canadiens in their playoff series opener on Wednesday night.

 

The NHL's Department of Player Safety made the announcement Thursday after a hearing with the Jets' scoring leader in the aftermath of Montreal's 5-3 win.

 

Scheifele was handed a charging major and a game misconduct on the play, which came with 57 seconds to go in regulation and led to Evans being taken off the ice on a stretcher.

 

The ruling means Scheifele won't be eligible to return until Game 6, if necessary, in the best-of-seven series.

NHL calls Winnipeg Jets forward Mark Scheifele in for hearing after hit on Evans

Mark Scheifele faces a hearing today after the Jets forward's crushing hit on Jake Evans of the Canadiens Wednesday night.

 

Because it is not an in-person hearing, the NHL's Department of Player Safety says in its regulations that the maximum suspension is five games.

 

Scheifele was assessed a major for charging and a game misconduct. The Montreal player had just come around the empty net and scored with 57 seconds left in the Canadiens' 5-3 road win in Game 1 of the North Division final.

 

Evans, a 25-year-old from Toronto, flew to the ice banging his head, and was carried off on a stretcher.

 

Montreal interim head coach Dominique Ducharme called the hit “vicious“ and “useless.”

 

In 2018, Evans was hit during a rookie showcase game, taken off the ice on a stretcher to hospital, and put in concussion protocol.

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