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Tuesday, May 31, 2016

{allcanada} June 1: Penguins win Cup for second straight year

 

THIS DATE IN HISTORY: June 1

1992: The Pittsburgh Penguins win their second straight Stanley Cup title, completing a sweep of the Final by holding off the Chicago Blackhawks for a 6-5 victory in Game 4 at Chicago Stadium. It's the 11th consecutive playoff win for the Penguins, tying the NHL postseason record.

Pittsburgh takes three one-goal leads in the first period, only to have the Blackhawks pull even each time on a goal by Dirk Graham. Rick Tocchet puts Pittsburgh ahead 4-3 early in the second period, but Chicago ties the game again on a goal by Jeremy Roenick.

Larry Murphy's goal early in the third period puts Pittsburgh ahead 5-4, and this time the Penguins get the next goal. Ron Francis scores what proves to be the Cup-winner at 7:59, giving Pittsburgh a 6-4 lead. Roenick scores again midway through the period.

Mario Lemieux, who has two assists in Game 4, wins the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP for the second straight year. He had 34 points in 15 games.

 

MORE MOMENTS

1993: The Los Angeles Kings make their first Cup Final game a success by defeating the Montreal Canadiens 4-1 at the Forum. Wayne Gretzky sets up the Kings' first three goals before hitting an empty net with 1:58 remaining. Kelly Hrudey makes 31 saves for the Kings, who are the last of the remaining 1967 expansion teams to reach the Final.

Goalie Kelly Hrudey #32 and teammate Jari Kurri #17 of the Los Angeles Kings defend the net during the 1993 Stanley Cup Final

 

1995: The Detroit Red Wings win a playoff game in overtime at home for the first time since 1960 when defenseman Nicklas Lidstrom scores 1:01 into OT for a 2-1 victory against the Blackhawks in Game 1 of the Western Conference Final at Joe Louis Arena. Detroit's Keith Primeau ties the game 1-1 early in the second period after Chicago's Joe Murphy scores a power-play goal late in the first. It's Detroit's first home OT win in the playoffs since a 2-1 victory against the Toronto Maple Leafs on March 29, 1960, ending a streak of 10 straight losses.

 

1996: The Florida Panthers become the first modern NHL team to reach the Final in their third season by defeating the Penguins 3-1 in Pittsburgh in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Final. John Vanbiesbrouck makes 39 saves, and forward Tom Fitzgerald puts Florida ahead to stay by beating Tom Barrasso 6:18 into the third period for a 2-1 lead.

 

2011: Roberto Luongo becomes the sixth goaltender to earn a shutout in his first appearance in the Final by making 36 saves in the Vancouver Canucks' 1-0 victory against the Boston Bruins in Game 1 at Rogers Arena. Raffi Torres beats Boston goaltender Tim Thomas with 18.5 seconds remaining in the third period. It's the first time since 1927 that Game 1 of the Final remains scoreless for this long (59:41).

Roberto Luongo #1 of the Vancouver Canucks is congratulated by teammates after he shut out the Boston Bruins 1-0 in game one of the 2011 NHL Stanley Cup Final

 

2014: Defenseman Alec Martinez scores 5:47 into overtime to give the Kings a 5-4 victory against the Blackhawks in Game 7 of the Western Conference Final at United Center. Los Angeles trails 2-0, 3-2 and 4-3 before Marian Gaborik scores with 7:17 remaining in the third period to get the Kings even at 4-4. Martinez wins the game when his shot from the left point hits Chicago defenseman Nick Leddy and knuckles its way past goaltender Corey Crawford. Kings forward Justin Williams scores the seventh Game 7 goal of his career, tying Glenn Anderson for the most in NHL history. His teams are 7-0 in Game 7.

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{allcanada} Pillar, Barney star as Blue Jays top Yankees again

 

TORONTO — Kevin Pillar followed up a spectacular catch in the outfield with a tie-breaking single to lead the Toronto Blue Jays past the New York Yankees 4-1 on Tuesday night.

Justin Smoak had a home run in the fourth inning for the Blue Jays (28-26), who have back-to-back wins and have been victorious in six of their last seven.

J.A. Happ (6-2) earned a no-decision after giving up a run on four hits over six innings with four strikeouts. Joe Biagini and Jesse Chavez pitched a scoreless inning each before closer Roberto Osuna came on to earn his 12th save of the season.

Biagini (3-1) earned the win as the pitcher of record when Pillar hit his RBI single.

C.C. Sabathia (3-4) sustained the loss after giving up two runs on four hits and five strikeouts over six innings for New York (24-27). Dellin Betances and Kirby Yates came out of the bullpen for the Yankees.

Aaron Hicks got New York on the board in the second inning, grounding into a fielder's choice that brought home Chase Headley.

Pillar brought the 33,419 in attendance to their feet with a highlight-reel diving catch in centre field on catcher Austine Romine's hit to end the fourth inning. The standing ovation continued as Pillar trotted off the field and into the Toronto dugout.

Smoak tied it in the fourth inning with a solo shot to left-centre field, his fifth home run of the season. Yankees centre-fielder Jacoby Ellsbury bounced off the outfield wall as he tried to get a glove on the ball before it went over the fence.

Pillar again brought the crowd at Rogers Centre to its feet, driving Edwin Encarnacion in from second with a two-out single off Betances in the seventh inning for the Blue Jays first lead of the game.

Darwin Barney tacked two more runs on to that, scoring Devon Travis and Pillar with another single to right field to make it 4-1. Barney got caught in a rundown between first and second to end the seventh.

Pillar's fielding helped out Toronto again in the ninth, catching pinch hitter Brian McCann's long fly ball in right-centre field for Osuna's second out of the inning. Pillar followed that up with an easier pop fly in left-centre field on Didi Gregorius to end the game.

Notes: Former closer Jason Grilli and cash considerations were acquired by Toronto in a trade with the Atlanta Braves earlier Tuesday. In return, Atlanta obtained right-hander Sean Ratclilffe, from Ajax, Ont., an 18th-round pick in 2013 who was 2-2 with a 3.60 ERA in 22 games with Class-A Vancouver last year.

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{allcanada} Ex-NHL player pleads not guilty to assaulting woman

 

BARNSTABLE, Mass. (AP) -- A former NHL player has pleaded not guilty to charges he assaulted a woman in Massachusetts over the weekend.

The Cape Cod Times reports (http://bit.ly/1sZTAnz) Daniel LaCouture appeared Tuesday in Barnstable District Court on charges of assault and battery and vandalizing property.

Police responded just after 6 p.m. Saturday to a house in Centerville, where they say the 39-year-old LaCouture hid underneath a vehicle in the home's driveway before confronting the victim and striking her in the collarbone.

LaCouture is due back in court July 15.

A phone number listed for LaCouture in online public records was disconnected.

LaCouture made his NHL debut with Edmonton in 1999. The forward had 20 goals and 25 assists in 337 career games with six NHL teams.

He is one of dozens of plaintiffs in a class-action lawsuit against the NHL over concussion-related injuries.

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{allcanada} Jays acquire P Grilli from Braves

 

ATLANTA — The Toronto Blue Jays acquired former closer Jason Grilli from the Atlanta Braves on Tuesday for a pitching prospect.

A 39-year-old right-hander, Grilli is 1-2 with a 5.29 ERA and two saves in his comeback from a career-threatening injury. Grilli's 2015 season ended when tore his left Achilles tendon on July 11. He had 24 saves and a 2.94 ERA in 36 games before the injury.

Hard-throwing Arodys Vizcaino has six saves and a 1.66 ERA in his emergence as the Braves' new closer.

Atlanta, 15-35 entering Tuesday and tied with Minnesota for the major leagues' worst record, is rebuilding. General manager John Coppolella said the trade helps open a spot for another young arm.

"We wanted to go with young pitching," Coppolella said. "What we've tried to do in a year like this is to try to find out what we have with the arms we have here."

The Braves expect to have right-hander Jim Johnson (right groin strain) come off the 15-day disabled list on Friday. Coppolella said right-hander Shae Simmons, recovering from Tommy John surgery, also should soon join Atlanta's roster.

Toronto also gets $2,175,000 from Atlanta, offsetting much of the $2,371,585 remaining after Tuesday of Grilli's $3.5 million salary this year. His deal includes a $3 million team option for 2017 with a $250,000 buyout.

Atlanta obtained right-hander Sean Ratclilffe, an 18th-round pick in 2013 who was 2-2 with a 3.60 ERA in 22 games with Class A Vancouver last year. The Braves recalled right-hander Ryan Weber from Triple-A Gwinnett to fill Grilli's spot on the active roster.

Ratcliffe, 21, was in the Blue Jays' extended spring training and will report to the Braves' extended spring program.

"We had seen him two weeks back and our scouts who saw him thought he could help the Braves organization," Coppolella said. "We'd like to see him throw for us first and then go from there and see where he can help us."

As rumours of the impending trade spread on Tuesday, Grilli went through his normal pregame routine, including shagging fly balls in the outfield during batting practice. The trade became official about 30 minutes before the Braves' game against the San Francisco Giants.

Grilli has 76 saves, including 33 with Pittsburgh in 2013. He made his debut in the majors with Florida in 2001 and has also pitched for the White Sox, Detroit, Colorado, Texas and the Angels.

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{allcanada} Ray feeling no pain at Argonauts training camp

 

GUELPH, Ont. — Toronto Argonauts head coach Scott Milanovich is sleeping pretty soundly these days.

That's because veteran quarterback Ricky Ray continues to throw pain-free at the team's training camp. Ray missed most of last season recovering from off-season shoulder surgery.

The 36-year-old Californian went under the knife after playing with pain in the joint for two years. But roughly a week after reporting to the Argos — Ray joined the club's rookies last week before camp officially opened on the weekend — the three-time Grey Cup champion is experiencing no shoulder discomfort, which is great news for Milanovich.

"His arm looks better than it has in two years to me," Milanovich said Tuesday following the third day of training camp. "It's back to the way it was when he first got here (in 2012).

"The only concern now is if it's able to stay strong throughout the season. Usually the third day (of camp) is the hardest day and he looked great. It's making it easier to sleep at night, there's no doubt."

Ray did return to the lineup late in the season, making two starts — including the Argos' 25-22 East Division semifinal loss to Hamilton. He finished 47 of 65 passing for 423 yards with two TDs and one interception.

"It just feels good to be out here participating," Ray said. "Last year was a lot of rehab and watching and just really not knowing how or when my shoulder was going to be back or if I was ever going to be able to do anything.

"It's just nice to be involved and not have to worry about that this year. My arm is getting a little tired like it normally does but no pain and no real soreness so I'm very pleased."

The surgery hasn't noticeably increased Ray's arm strength, which has never been Ray's forte over his 13 CFL seasons. But the former Sacramento State star is throwing a much tighter spiral, which could be beneficial in breezy conditions as those passes tend to cut through wind more easily.

The six-foot-three 210-pound Ray is the most accurate passer in CFL history with a completion average of 67.7 per cent.

Veteran slotback Andre Durie, who's also coming back from two injury-plagued seasons, likes what he's seen from Ray so far.

"He's looking good, man, looking really good," Durie said. "He's been looking like the Ricky of old, only improved."

A healthy Ray is crucial for Toronto as backup Trevor Harris — who led the squad to a 9-7 record with Ray sidelined — is now with the Ottawa Redblacks. The Argos have three other quarterbacks in camp — veterans Adrian McPherson and Logan Kilgore and rookie Cody Fajardo.

While Ray is pain-free, the Argos are being careful with their star quarterback.

"He's not taking as many reps in the second practice," Milanovich said. "Hopefully he understands any time it gets sore or tired out of the norm, which is going to happen to some degree in training camp, he needs to come to us and give us an opportunity to get the guys who are going to be our backups ready to play with the (starters).

"But guys are competitors and want to be out there so I'm not sure if he'll do that or not."

Ray, entering his fifth season in Toronto, worked this off-season with Tom House, a former major-league pitcher who now tutors NFL quarterbacks. Ray now goes through a thorough warmup prior to each practice to ensure his shoulder is ready to handle the workload.

"Back in my younger days I could just pick up a ball and make some throws and get warm," Ray said with a chuckle. "I'm just doing a better job of taking care of my arm with some of the things I learned this off-season.

"I haven't really been sore this camp yet so hopefully it's been because of the warmup I've been going through."

Ray said the absence of shoulder pain is allowing him to concentrate solely on football.

"Just not having to go through those mental hurdles every day of getting through the pain to warm up and not being able to trust it, and not knowing how it's going to feel play to play," he said. "I'm able to go out there and focus on the playbook and not worry about the arm and it feels real good."

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{allcanada} Giovinco day-to-day with adductor injury

 

TORONTO — It didn't take midfielder Benoit Cheyrou long to recognize Toronto FC's rivalry with Montreal.

"I think when you meet fans in the city, you can feel the dislike, as you say," the French veteran said after training Tuesday. "So we know that it's very important for our fans, for their pride."

Cheyrou acknowledged he likes the city of Montreal. "But I prefer Toronto."

"They speak French there, but I prefer Toronto, the city, the atmosphere. And the fans as well."

Good answer, he was told. "Easy answer," he responded with a smile.

A healthy Cheyrou, back from suspension and a lingering quad injury that have kept him out since April 2, is a boost for Toronto as it hosts the Montreal Impact on Wednesday night in the first leg of the Amway Canadian Championship semifinal.

Toronto star striker Sebastian Giovinco is a question mark, however. He is listed day-to-day with an adductor injury although coach Greg Vanney admits it is hard to keep the Atomic Ant off the field.

Ottawa Fury FC hosts defending champion Vancouver in the other semifinal Wednesday. The second legs go June 8.

The Canadian winner advances to the CONCACAF Champions League whose victor earns a berth in the FIFA Club World Cup. It's a chance to play for North American clubs to play internationally and enhance reputations while filling the club coffers in the process.

Toronto has won the Canadian title four times to Montreal's three and Vancouver's one.

The Impact have been a thorn in Toronto's side in recent years.

An 84th-minute goal by former TFC player Dominic Oduro knocked TFC out of the Canadian championship last year. Toronto won the game 3-2 but Montreal advanced to the final on the away goals rule with the series tied 3-3.

Montreal rubbed salt in the wound with a pair of wins at the end of the 2015 season. A 2-1 loss in Montreal last October dropped Toronto down the standings, meaning they had to make their franchise post-season debut on the road — in Montreal, where they were drubbed 3-0.

A 2-0 league win over the Impact in April helped restore some pride. That marked the start of a six-game winless streak (0-2-4) for Montreal (5-4-4), which finally ended on the weekend with a 3-2 victory over the visiting L.A. Galaxy.

Toronto (4-5-4) is winless in four (0-2-2) in league play and has failed to score in 228 minutes.

Toronto's two other designated players are unavailable Wednesday. Midfielder Michael Bradley is with the U.S. team at Copa America while striker Jozy Altidore (hamstring) is injured.

Midfielder Will Johnson is away with the Canadian team. Rookie forward Tsubasa Endoh is still making his way back from a leg injury.

Toronto showed a new-look lineup in practice Tuesday with Cheyrou playing holding midfielder in front of a backline of Ashtone Morgan, Nick Hagglund, Eriq Zavaleta and Steven Beitashour. Striker Jordan Hamilton was up front with a midfield of Mo Babouli, Jonathan Osorio, Marky Delgado and Jay Chapman.

Starting centre back Drew Moor is a question mark after his wife gave birth Tuesday morning. Giovinco did not train with the main team in the portion of practice open to the media.

Assuming No. 1 'keeper Clint Irwin plays and Moor doesn't, that means Toronto may field just four regular starters.

Injuries and international absences have forced Impact coach Mauro Biello to dig into his roster.

Montreal will likely field a makeshift backline with Laurent Ciman (Belgium) and Ambroise Oyongo (Cameroon) away on international duty and Victor Cabrera and Donny Toia both injured.

Midfelders Marco Donadel and Calum Mallace are also injured. Backup Erik Kronberg will start in goal.

"To me it's a very important game," Biello said. "(Didier) Drogba will be available. The fact that we're not playing league games gives me the flexibility to use a player like Drogba.

"It's important, there's no doubt. We know what this could bring and that's our mentality going into these games."

Influential playmaker Ignacio Piatti is also available for the Impact.

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Posted by Cidinha at 12:25 PM 0 comments

{allcanada} Bautista on Toronto: "I'd be stupid to leave"

 

Toronto Blue Jays slugger Jose Bautista will be a free agent at season's end, but that doesn't mean he's a lock to leave town.

Bautista spoke to Sports Illustrated's Tom Verducci in a recent interview and said he would be "stupid" to leave the Blue Jays for another team.

"I love the city," he said. "I'd be stupid to leave."

The 35-year-old, who's in the final year of a six-year, $78 million contract, was seeking a five-year, $150 million contract back in spring training, according to TSN Senior Correspondent Rick Westhead. Bautista would later deny that report and said he is not willing to negotiate a new deal during the season.

Bautista confirmed his sentiment from March that he is not interested in taking a hometown discount to stay with the Jays.

"I will explore every single option, whether it happens or not with the new regime, to continue to try to stay here," he told Verducci. "That being said, I think teams utilize that a lot against players, [seeking] a discount or bargain price, and I think that's extremely unfair, especially to have your biggest contributors on the field and try to take advantage of the fact that they like it there and negotiate a tougher deal."

The native of Dominican Republic is hitting .237 with 11 home runs and 37 RBIs over 52 games in 2016, his ninth season in Toronto.

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Posted by Cidinha at 12:24 PM 0 comments

{allcanada} Former Maple Leaf Arcobello signs 2-year deal with Swiss club

 

Free agent forward Mark Arcobello signed a two-year deal with SC Bern of the Swiss League Tuesday.

Arcobello spent the 2015-16 season bouncing between the Toronto Marlies of the American Hockey League and the Toronto Maple Leafs. The 27-year-old totalled three goals and four points in 20 games with the Maple Leafs.

Although he played in just 49 games with the Marlies, Arcobello finished second in team scoring with 25 goals and 59 points.

Arcobello scored 23 goals and totalled 53 points in 139 NHL games with the Edmonton Oilers, Nashville Predators, Pittsburgh Penguins, Arizona Coyotes, and Maple Leafs.

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{allcanada} Whitecaps find out draw for CONCACAF Champions League group stage

 

MIAMI — The Vancouver Whitecaps drew Central FC and Major League Soccer rival Sporting Kansas City on Monday night for the group stage of the CONCACAF Champions League.

Vancouver will face both Central FC, from Trinidad and Tobago, and Sporting Kansas City twice, once at home and once away, between August and October. The top team in the group will advance to the knockout stages, which start in early 2017.

The group stage schedule will be announced in the coming weeks.

The Whitecaps, who played in the CONCACAF Champions League for the first time last season, earned Canada's lone entry in the tournament after winning last year's Amway Canadian Championship.

The CONCACAF Champions League is a 24-team competition between the top clubs from North America, Central America, and the Caribbean. The winner of the CCL qualifies for the annual FIFA Club World Cup, where they compete against the top teams from Asia, Africa, South America, Oceana, and Europe.

Barcelona are the reigning Club World Cup champions.

Vancouver didn't advance to the knockout round last year after going 1-2-1 in the group stage.

Mexican powerhouse Club America are the two-time defending CONCACAF champions, but didn't qualify for this year's tournament.

An MLS team has never won the CCL although Montreal reached the final in 2014-15.

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{allcanada} Tiger-Cats sign LB Lawrence to extension

 

The Hamilton Tiger-Cats signed linebacker Simoni Lawrence to a two-year contract extension on Tuesday.

Lawrence, who was named the East Division's Most Outstanding Defensive Player and a CFL All-Star and for the first time in his career in 2015, was also named a Divisional All-Star for the second consecutive campaign. He started all 18 games at linebacker and recorded career highs in defensive tackles (80) and sacks (5), while adding two interceptions, two fumble recoveries and one forced fumble.

"Simoni is an outstanding player with a great work ethic and love for the game that is infectious to everyone around him," said Tiger-Cats vice president of football operations and head coach Kent Austin. "He embodies the qualities we look for in a football player and we're very pleased he will be a Tiger-Cat through 2017."

The 6-1, 228-pound native of Pennsylvania has appeared in 61 career CFL games (46 starts) with the Edmonton Eskimos and Tiger-Cats, registering 225 defensive tackles, 11 tackles for loss, nine quarterback sacks and seven interceptions.

He has also seen action in eight playoff games, including two Grey Cup appearances in 2013 and 2014 with Hamilton.

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Monday, May 30, 2016

{allcanada} Goins, Estrada lead Blue Jays past Yankees

 

TORONTO — Shortstop Ryan Goins had a double and a home run to back a solid performance by starting pitcher Marco Estrada as the Toronto Blue Jays topped the New York Yankees 4-2 on Monday night.

Edwin Encarnacion had a double and two runs batted in for Toronto (27-26). Estrada (3-2) pitched eight scoreless innings, giving up three hits and striking out six. Aaron Loup started the ninth on the mound for the Blue Jays, but gave up a two-run homer, with Drew Storen coming on to close out the game and earning the save.

Estrada's lengthy outing was desperately needed by the Blue Jays who, according to manager John Gibbons, were "strapped" for relievers after he'd had to rely heavily on his bullpen in the previous week.

Brian McCann hit a towering two-run homer to dead centre field in the ninth inning for the Yankees (24-26). Ivan Nova (3-3) gave up four runs on eight hits, while striking out four over six-plus innings. He was replaced by Nick Goody. Richard Bleier also came out of the bullpen for New York.

Encarnacion gave the Blue Jays an early lead in the first, hitting a double to left-centre field to drive in Josh Donaldson from first base.

Encarnacion added to that lead in the third inning, driving in Goins with a groundout to short. Michael Saunders followed that up with a double to deep centre field to score Jose Bautista from second base and make it 3-0.

Goins led off the fifth inning with a solo shot over the left-field wall at Rogers Centre, his third home run of the season, to give the Blue Jays a 4-0 lead.

Yankees shortstop Didi Gregorius made an impressive play to end the sixth inning. Darwin Barney's grounder took a big hop at the lip of the infield dirt, seemingly sailing over the charging Gregorius's head, but the New York infielder snapped the ball out of the air and fired it to first, easily getting the out.

Carlos Beltran earned a one-out walk in the ninth, with McCann coming to the plate next.

The Yankees catcher launched a 2-2 pitch deep over the head of Toronto centre-fielder Kevin Pillar, with the ball bouncing back off the stadium's facade and back on to the turf. Loup was pulled after the homer, with Mark Teixeira hitting a double to deep right field off of Storen.

Storen induced a pop fly by Starlin Castro then struck out Chase Headley to end the game.

Notes: Right-handed pitcher Ryan Tepera was recalled by Toronto from its triple-A affiliate in Buffalo, N.Y., earlier in the day. Infielder Jimmy Paredes was designated for assignment to make space for Tepera. ... The 1984 Canadian Olympic baseball team was in attendance. They were the first team to represent Canada in baseball at the Games. ... Announced attendance was 32,921.

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{allcanada} Bettman: Expansion process likely finalized in June

 

PITTSBURGH -- The NHL's ongoing expansion process involving the Las Vegas and Quebec City markets is expected to be finalized at the Board of Governors meeting in Las Vegas on June 22, NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said Monday.

Commissioner Bettman, speaking prior to Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final at Consol Energy Center (8 p.m. ET; NBC, CBC, TVA Sports), said he anticipates the Board of Governors will receive a recommendation on expansion from the BOG executive committee approximately a week prior to meeting in Las Vegas.

The Governors will likely then vote on expansion with three potential outcomes:

1) No expansion at all.

2) Deferred expansion to a later time.

3) Expansion to one or both markets.

"I am not going to handicap what's going to happen, but when the Board meets in Las Vegas on June 22, I am fairly certain that we will know more than we do today," Commissioner Bettman said.

NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly said the League's timeline for expansion would still allow for a new team or teams to begin playing in the 2017-18 season.

"We have said that's the earliest it will happen," Daly said. "It could be one of the decisions made is expansion is going to happen, but it's deferred a year. There's nothing about our current timing precludes 17-18."

If the vote is to expand, Daly said the League and the NHL Players' Association have the expansion draft rules "nailed down to the extent they need to be."

Following the press conference, Daly said first- and second-year professionals would be exempt from the expansion draft. He would not define what constitutes one year of professional hockey.

"There is a specific procedure and definition with respect to how you qualify professional players," Daly said. "But I'm not in a position to say more than that."

Daly said players with no-trade clauses would be eligible to be left exposed for a potential expansion draft. He did not speak in specifics about players with no-move clauses in their contracts.

"No-trade carries no significance with respect to the expansion draft at all," Daly said.

Daly said teams will not have to expose an agreed upon minimum amount of salary for the expansion draft, which is a change from what was discussed and made public at the NHL General Managers meetings in March.

"I think it was the result of a couple things, but primarily I alluded to the fact that we've looked at everybody's roster and kind of see where they fit and see what kind of protection they would have to have and clubs are in different places with respect to that," Daly said. "I think at the end of the day, from a competitive standpoint, we didn't think it made a huge difference."

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{allcanada} Dan Aykroyd praises ‘Ghostbusters’ reboot: ‘it has more laughs and more scares’

 
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It's not new information that Paul Feig's "Ghostbusters" reboot/remake/whatever you'd call it is polarizing fans far and wide. Some state it's going to ruin their childhood while others are going the straight up sexist route regarding this all female cast. While we're going to hold off judging the new film until it's released in theaters, one big name has been the project's loudest cheerleader from the get-go: Dan Aykroyd.

Sure, he may be biased as he's one of the masterminds behind the original film, but one has to admire the enthusiastic manner in which he is praising the new film. Most recently, Aykroyd took to his Facebook to claim the new "Ghostbusters" is better than the original films.

Look, we admit that is a bold stance for Stantz to make (see what we did there?), but with the advances in special effects and different dynamic the new cast will bring, it's possible he's correct. Aykroyd's statement, however, gives us pause … especially this part: "Apart from brilliant, genuine performances from the cast both female and male, it has more laughs and more scares than the first two films."

It's possible he's merely a huge fan of the team that is Feig, Leslie Jones, Kate McKinnon, Melissa McCarthy and Kristen Wiig. If that's it, then that's great! But, it could also be possible the studio is using Aykroyd as a marketing tool to convince the hardcore jaded fans to shell out their dollars once the film premieres.

As the franchise "originator," there's got to be a pretty penny in it for him if there's decent box office returns, right? As we said earlier, we're going to hold off on judging the film until it's released but at the very least, we can probably all agree on one cool "Ghostbusters" detail: "Bill Murray is in it!"

"Ghostbusters" hits theaters everywhere on July 15, 2016.

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{allcanada} Hudec to transfer from Canada to Czechs

 

CALGARY — Jan Hudec will no longer wear the Maple Leaf on his ski suit after Alpine Canada gave him permission to race for another country Monday.

Canada's governing body of ski racing approved Hudec's transfer to Czech Republic, the country of his birth. The switch still requires approval from the international governing body FIS.

Hudec earned Olympic super-G bronze in 2014 for the first alpine ski medal won by a Canadian male since 1994. He's been a member of Canada's alpine team for 14 years.

The 34-year-old and Alpine Canada disagreed on terms for him to race in 2016-17.

Hudec, who underwent an eighth surgery on his right knee last month, was left off the 35-member squad announced earlier this month.

So he's joining a professional team of racers from different countries. They will race World Cups next season under the flags of their respective countries.

Hudec said he felt Alpine Canada no longer saw him as a medal contender.

"It was the feeling of not being fully supported . . . when you feel that's where you can be and you don't have that, a certain level of the relationship gets broken down," Hudec told The Canadian Press from the Czech Republic.

"Obviously my first choice was to ski for Canada, but it was very apparent early on that wasn't going to be the best road for me as an athlete.

"I hope no one thinks badly of me for making this decision. I was indirectly forced into a good decision for my career."

Alpine Canada's financial terms and other conditions made Hudec feel he was being forced to retire.

He was told to pay $35,000 in team fees — negotiated down from $70,000 — which was still $10,000 higher than anyone else on the team.

Hudec also said if he wasn't ranked in the top 30 by the end of this year, he would have to foot the bill for racing the rest of the season.

Alpine Canada countered that Hudec wasn't willing to demonstrate post-surgery progress and fitness in supervised testing, although Hudec disputes that claim.

"We discussed with Jan certain conditions to ensure that he could successfully return to the World Cup tour as a podium contender," Alpine Canada said in Monday's statement.

"This included a successful rehabilitation of his most recent knee surgery, fitness standards, World Cup performance benchmarks, and a financial contribution to the additional costs that would be incurred to support him on the team.

"Jan has been clear that due to his other personal and business interests, he cannot commit himself to the program structure of the Canadian national ski team.

"Over the past several years, Jan has been living part-time in the Czech Republic and has significant family ties to the country."

An Alpine Canada spokeswoman said there would be no further comment on the matter.

Born in Sumperk, Czech Republic, Hudec's parents Jan and Vladi fled what was then Czechoslovakia in 1982 when he was a baby.

The family eventually made their way to Alberta in 1986. Hudec grew up ski racing in the Banff area.

Hudec and his Czech girlfriend Jarka Svejstilova have a one-year-old son. Knee and back injuries have limited Hudec to nine World Cup starts since the 2014 Winter Games.

He pushed out of the start hut just once in 2015-16 — the season-opening super-G in Lake Louise, Alta. — but did not finish.

Despite an injury-filled career, Hudec has produced an Olympic bronze, a world championship silver in 2007 and five World Cup medals.

His pro team is run by former Canadian men's speed team coach Lionel Finance of France.

Jeffrey Frisch of Mont-Tremblant, Que., competed in a similar format in 2014 when he didn't qualify for the Canadian team. He and skiers from Austria, Germany and Japan formed the Westberg Ski Team with its own sponsor.

The men's World Cup downhill season opens in Lake Louise in November. Hudec says it will still be a home race for him.

"It's sure as heck not going to affect how I treat people at the finish line," Hudec said.

"People who have supported me in skiing, people who were start referees at Lake Louise when I was eight years old racing down that mountain that still remember me and I remember them, those relationships are all going to stay the same.

"I'm not leaving with any hard feelings. I'm just going to where my dream can continue."

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