South African cricket player Quinton de Kock has apologized for refusing to play in a T20 World Cup game but says he felt his rights were “taken away” when he and his teammates were told they must take a knee in support of the Black Lives Matter movement.

De Kock says he will take a knee in the future. De Kock made himself unavailable for Tuesday's game against the West Indies after a directive from the South African cricket board that morning ordered all its players to take a knee before games.

De Kock explained he didn't previously take a knee because he felt he didn't have to prove he was against racism.

TORONTO - DeMar DeRozan scored 26 points to lead his Chicago Bulls past the Toronto Raptors 111-108 on Monday in a return to Scotiabank Arena against his former team.

DeRozan had three late field goals to help Chicago (4-0) remain undefeated. Bulls guard Zach LaVine added 22 points.

DeRozan played the first nine seasons of his NBA career in Toronto before getting traded to the San Antonio Spurs in 2018. He was traded to Chicago this past off-season.

OG Anunoby and Gary Trent Jr. led the Raptors (1-3) offensively with 22 and 18 points, respectively.

Toronto is winless in three starts at home this season.

After DeRozan pushed the Bulls to a 108-102 lead with just over a minute remaining, Raptors guard Fred VanVleet hit an inside shot to pull Toronto to within four.

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) - Sarah Fillier scored twice, including the go-ahead goal with 3:58 remaining, and Canada beat the United States 3-2 in Game 2 of the rivals' nine-game pre-Olympic series on Monday night.

Victoria Bach also scored for Canada, which opened the series with a 3-1 win at Allentown, Pennsylvania, on Friday night. The Canadians, who beat the Americans for the gold medal at the world championships this summer, have now won four straight against the U.S. - their best run since a five-game streak from Dec. 3, 2017 to Feb. 15, 2018.

Cayla Barnes had a goal and an assist and Amanda Kessel also scored for the U.S.

The game featured a rematch of goaltenders from Canada's 3-2 overtime win at worlds on Aug. 31. Canada's Ann-Renee Desbiens stopped 18 shots while USA's Nicole Hensley stopped 17.

The series resumes at Kingston, Ontario, on Nov. 21.

American defenseman Megan Keller committed an undisciplined roughing penalty that led to the decisive goal. Keller cross-checked a Canadian player near the benches.

MONTREAL - Felix Auger-Aliassime and Denis Shapovalov will lead Canada at the upcoming Davis Cup Finals international tennis tournament.

Montreal's Auger-Aliassime, ranked 12th in the world, and Shapovalov of Richmond Hill, Ont., ranked 13th, join Vancouver's Vasek Pospisil as returning players from the Canadian team that advanced to the final tie of the 2019 tournament before losing to host Spain.

Brayden Schnur of Pickering, Ont., and Peter Polansky of Thornhill, Ont., will also represent Canada at the tournament, which begins Nov. 25 in Madrid.

Auger-Aliassime, 21, will be representing Canada for the fourth time at the Davis Cup. His successful 2021 season saw him reach the semifinals of the U.S. Open and rise to a career-high 11th in the ATP Tour rankings.

Shapovalov, 22, will be taking part in his eighth Davis Cup event. He reaching the final of the Geneva Open and the semifinals of Wimbledon this year..

The 31-year-old Pospisil will be counted on to provide veteran leadership in his 21st Davis Cup event.

The Norman Northstars began a 7-game road swing this past weekend.  

On Friday and Saturday, the Northstars faced off against the Winnipeg Thrashers, holding their own in both games.    The Thrashers came away with the wins, 7-4 and 3-2. 

On Sunday, the Northstars had another strong showing but ultimately couldn't get the better of the Winnipeg Wild.   The Wild won 4-3 in a shoot out.  

The Northstars next game is this Friday against the Pembina Valley Hawks.

The Winnipeg Blue Bombers will have to try and clinch top spot in the West Division standings Saturday without running back Andrew Harris.

The Blue Bombers placed the 34-year-old Winnipeg native on the six-game injured list Friday with a knee ailment.

Winnipeg (9-1) can cement first place in the West - and the right to host the division final Dec. 5 - with a home win Saturday over the B.C. Lions (4-5). The Bombers have not only won seven straight games but are unbeaten both within the conference (7-0) and at IG Field (5-0) this year.

Harris ran for 39 yards on six carries in Winnipeg's 26-16 win last week over Edmonton. But he grabbed his right knee after a five-yard TD reception late in the first half.

Brady Oliveira replaced Harris and ran for 105 yards on 16 carries against the Elks. He'll start in Winnipeg's backfield versus B.C.

This season, Harris has rushed for 623 yards and three TDs on 116 carries (5.37-yard average). He has also recorded seven receptions for 116 yards and a touchdown.

PHILADELPHIA - The NFL and lawyers for thousands of retired NFL players have reached an agreement to end race-based adjustments in dementia testing in the $1 billion settlement of concussion claims.

That's according to a proposed settlement filed in federal court in Philadelphia on Wednesday.

Critics say the use of “race-norming” in the testing has made it difficult for Black retirees to qualify for awards that average $500,000 or more.

The proposed changes come after months of closed-door negotiations.

The NFL says the plan would provide “a race-neutral evaluation process” and “diagnostic accuracy and fairness in the concussion settlement.”

The league says it hopes Senior U.S. District Judge Anita Brody approves it promptly.

Canada's Olympic and Paralympic athletes must be vaccinated to compete at the 2022 Winter Games in Beijing.

The Canadian Olympic and Paralympic Committees announced a COVID-19 vaccine mandate on Wednesday, saying the decision was made with support of the boards of directors and athlete commissions.

Canadian Olympic Committee CEO David Shoemaker pointed out that 840 coaches and staff travelled to the Tokyo 2020 Olympics this past summer without a positive case.

“We want to do the same for Beijing,” he said in a statement.

The United Stated Olympic Committee announced a similar vaccine mandate recently.

The Olympic open Feb. 4 and the Paralympics on March 4.

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) - Joel Eriksson Ek had a hat trick for Minnesota, tying the game with 59 seconds remaining in regulation and winning it on a power play in overtime to stun the Winnipeg Jets 6-5 in a raucous home opener for the Wild on Tuesday night.

Eriksson Ek, who signed an eight-year, $42 million contract this summer, scored the equalizer just 15 seconds after an empty-netter by Jets center Mark Scheifele was wiped out by an offside call that came from a replay challenge by Minnesota.

Instead of taking a two-goal lead to the locker room, the Jets were suddenly on their heels as the Wild finished the third period with an 18-5 shots advantage.

Josh Morrissey was called for holding Kirill Kaprizov near the midpoint of overtime, giving the Wild a 4-on-3. Eriksson Ek scored on a 3-on-1 rush to beat Connor Hellebuyck, who has given up 14 goals in three losses to start the season.

Hellebuyck stopped 38 shots on a rough night for the goalies. Cam Talbot made 25 saves for the Wild, none bigger than the denial of Logan Stanley on a 2-on-1 right before Eriksson Ek's winner.

Mats Zuccarello had two goals and two assists, Marcus Foligno scored on a power play with 4:58 left in regulation and Kaprizov had three assists for the Wild in this spirited renewal of the Central Division rivalry with the Jets.

Toronto Maple Leafs prospect Nick Robertson will be out a minimum of 10 weeks with a broken leg.

Robertson, who started the season with the American Hockey League's Toronto Marlies, has a non-displaced fracture of his right fibula.

The Marlies said on Tuesday morning he was injured in Sunday's 5-0 loss to the Manitoba Moose.

Robertson will not need surgery.

The 20-year-old forward had two assists in two games with the minor-league club this season.

He had five goals and 11 assists for the Marlies in the 2020-21 campaign.

FIFA and Qatari organizers of next year's World Cup have teamed up with the World Health Organization to use soccer's marquee event for promoting public health.

The partnership follows years of scrutiny on Qatar and criticism of conditions for migrant workers.

The World Cup was moved to a November start date to avoid the desert heat that was once the tournament's main health risk.

Organizers say the World Cup will be “the first global mass gathering of this scale since the spread of the pandemic.”

Cody Bellinger hit a tiebreaking single in the ninth inning and prized midseason acquisition Max Scherzer came out of the bullpen for his first career save, sending the Los Angeles Dodgers past the San Francisco Giants 2-1 in a thrilling winner-take-all Game 5 and into the NL Championship Series.

Bellinger's big hit decided a scintillating Division Series between the top two teams in baseball with 213 regular-season wins between them, adding a new chapter to this storied, century-old rivalry.

Mookie Betts had a postseason career-high four hits and the defending World Series champion Dodgers advanced to a rematch with Atlanta in the NLCS beginning Saturday.

Brady Tkachuk and the Ottawa Senators have agreed to a seven-year, US$57.5 million contract.

The Senators made the announcement on Thursday morning, hours before Ottawa's home opener against the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Tkachuk was a restricted free agent and had not played for the Senators during the pre-season until a deal was reached.

The contract has an average value of $8.214 million annually.

Tkachuk will be paid $4 million this season, $6.5 million in 2022-23, $10.5 million in 2023-24, $10.5 million in 2024-25, $10.5 million in 2025-26, $8.5 million in 2026-27 and $7 million in 2027-28.

The 22-year-old Tkachuk played in all 56 of Ottawa's games last season and led the Senators in scoring with 36 points (17 goals, 19 assists).

TORONTO - The puck will drop on a new NHL season tonight for most of Canada's teams - although fans may notice some differences from previous years.

The Toronto Maple Leafs host the Montreal Canadiens in the first game of the evening, a return to the tradition of having the two storied rivals open their seasons against each other.

It's the first of five games on the schedule, including the Winnipeg Jets travelling to Anaheim to take on the Ducks. The night will wrap in Edmonton as the Oilers welcome the Vancouver Canucks. Both Toronto and Montreal will be missing their biggest stars.

Maple Leafs forward Auston Matthews will miss the game as he recovers from off-season wrist surgery and Habs goaltender Carey Price has voluntarily entered the league's player assistance program for unspecified mental health issues.

Canadiens captain Shea Weber is also out, as he's on the team's long-term injury reserve list and could be out for the entire season.

Fans attending the games in Toronto and Edmonton in person will also be subject to restrictions designed to slow the spread of COVID-19.

WASHINGTON - In the battle for Toronto Raptors roster spots and playing time, Malachi Flynn and Sam Dekker made solid cases on Tuesday.

The duo combined for 25 fourth-quarter points to lift the Raptors 113-108 over the Washington Wizards in their pre-season finale.

“They both played really good, there's no doubt and Sam certainly got hot there, it's going to make the decisions tougher, I think, as we move forward,” said coach Nick Nurse. “We're going to have to talk it over and think through a little bit and see what we end up with.”

Flynn, who is fighting for a spot in Nurse's rotation in his second season with the Raptors, finished with 22 points.

“I was really happy with Malachi bouncing back again. Seems like he's been really good, and had a couple tough nights and then really good,” Nurse said. “He bounced back, sign of a competitive guy. Obviously had a big fourth quarter there, as well.”

Dekker, who had 18 points against his former team, is battling for one of the three remaining roster spots.

 Kyrie Irving can keep refusing to get the COVID-19 vaccine.

He just won't play for the Brooklyn Nets until he does.

The Nets announced Tuesday that Irving would not play or practice with them until he could be a full participant, ending the idea that he would play in only road games.

Irving hasn't said he isn't vaccinated, asking for privacy when he spoke via Zoom during the team's media day on Sept. 27.

But he had rarely been with the team in New York, where a mandate requires professional athletes playing for a team in the city have to be vaccinated against COVID-19 to play or practice in public venues.

“Kyrie's made it clear that he has a choice in this matter and it's ultimately going to be up to him what he decides,” general manager Sean Marks said.

“We respect the fact that he has a choice, he can make his own and right now what's best for the organization is the path that we're taking.”

WINNIPEG - Nikolaj Ehlers scored two goals, including the game-winner to lead the Winnipeg Jets to a 3-2 victory over the Calgary Flames on Wednesday in a pre-season NHL game at the Canada Life Centre.

Josh Morrissey opened scoring for Winnipeg (2-21) in the first period and Connor Hellebuyck made 16 saves in net for the win.

Andrew Mangiapane and Glenn Gawdin both scored in the second period for Calgary (2-4-1).

Goaltender Dan Vladar stopped 37 shots for the Flames.

Although it looked like Calgary had tied it with Vladar pulled from the net, it was called off due to a high stick after a video review.

Ehlers snapped a 2-2 tie on a power play at 9:14 of the third period.

Toronto Blue Jays general manager Ross Atkins says the sentiment among the clubhouse members, staff and front office is they're “exceptionally optimistic” about where the team is heading.

Speaking at a season-ending media availability, Atkins also says he's excited to build upon the progress that was made this season.

The Blue Jays finished the campaign strong but came up just short in their bid to reach the playoffs.

Toronto finished fourth in the American League East division standings at 91-71. The Blue Jays were one game behind the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees, who claimed the wild-card berths.

Atkins says the team has interest in pending free agents Marcus Semien and Robbie Ray, adding the “dialogue will be constant.”

The Blue Jays reached the expanded playoffs in last year's truncated season but were swept in the wild-card series by Tampa Bay. Toronto last won the World Series in 1993.

WINNIPEG - Wide receiver Kenny Lawler has been suspended by the Winnipeg Blue Bombers after he told the team he had been arrested for drunk driving.

Lawler will miss Friday's game when the Edmonton Elks visit Winnipeg.

The Blue Bombers said in a statement that Lawler was arrested for operating a motor vehicle while impaired early Monday morning.

The team said it reported the incident to the CFL's head office and that Lawler agreed to seek help for alcohol abuse.

Lawler leads the CFL with 703 receiving yards this season and his 45 catches are second in the league.

He has four receiving touchdowns, tied for second in the CFL.

VANCOUVER - Bo Horvat and Tanner Pearson each had a goal and an assist Sunday as the Canucks topped the Winnipeg Jets 3-2 in Vancouver.

Nic Petan also scored for the Canucks, who are now 2-2-0 in pre-season action.

Jeff Malott and Kristian Reichel each tallied a goal and an assist for Winnipeg as the Jets fell to 1-2-1.

Jaroslav Halak stopped 9-of-10 shots for the home team before being replaced in the third period. Michael DiPietro had seven saves in relief.

Jets netminder Mikhail Berdin registered 30 saves across three full frames of work.

The Canucks iced the more veteran team, with Winnipeg opting to rest several stars after dropping a 4-3 victory to the Oilers in Edmonton on Saturday.

TORONTO - The Toronto Blue Jays did their part.

But their dramatic push for the playoffs fell just short, after Boston rallied to beat Washington on Sunday.

The Blue Jays routed the Baltimore Orioles 12-4 to sweep their regular-season ending series, pushing them to the brink of a berth in an American League wild-card tiebreaker game.

When the Blue Jays left the field with their 91st win and the 29,942 frenzied fans at the Rogers Centre behind, the possibility of extending the season by at least one more game was unresolved.

The Blue Jays (91-71) needed a win and a loss from either the Boston Red Sox or New York Yankees to make it to a tiebreaker game for one of the two wild-card slots.

The Yankees (92-70) won their outing 1-0 at home in the bottom of the ninth against the Tampa Bay Rays. But the Red Sox (91-70) hit a two-run homer in the top of the ninth to take a 7-5 lead in Washington.