MADRID (AP) — Lionel Messi’s most recent contract with Barcelona is worth up to 555 million euros ($673 million) over four seasons, El Mundo newspaper reported on Sunday.
The Spanish daily said it had access to the document Messi signed with the Catalan club in 2017, which included fixed incomes and variables that could reach nearly 138 million euros ($167 million) each season. The newspaper said it is the most expensive contract ever agreed with an athlete in any sport.
Messi would have to pay about half of that in taxes in Spain.
The report said the 33-year-old player has already secured more than 510 million euros ($619 million) of the total.
Barcelona denied responsibility for leaking the document and said it would take legal action against the newspaper.
“The club regrets its publication given that it is a private document governed by the principle of confidentiality between the parties,” it said in a statement. “FC Barcelona categorically denies any responsibility for the publication of this document, and will take appropriate legal action against the newspaper El Mundo, for any damage that may be caused as a result of this publication.”
The club expressed its “absolute support for Lionel Messi, especially in the face of any attempt to discredit his image, and to damage his relationship with the entity where he has worked to become the best player in the world and in football history.”
Messi, who did not immediately make any public comments about the report, later Sunday scored a goal in the team’s 2-1 win against Athletic Bilbao in the Spanish league. The result moved the Catalan club into second place for the first time this season, though its gap to leader Atlético Madrid was 10 points.
“We have to try to find out how this got to the press,” Barcelona coach Ronald Koeman said. “If someone from the club leaked this, that person can’t have a future in this club.”
The leak comes as Barcelona tries to manage a huge debt created mostly because of the coronavirus pandemic. The club has been led by a caretaker board since president Josep Bartomeu resigned in October while facing a no-confidence motion. New presidential elections are scheduled for March 7.
“I don’t understand how you can associate Messi with Barcelona’s problems,” Koeman said. “He has been showing his quality as a player for many years and has helped make this club great.”
The newspaper also detailed how Messi rewarded the club over the years, having helped it win more than 30 titles.
Messi has been with Barcelona for nearly two decades but asked to leave at the end of last season after saying he wasn’t happy with the direction the club was taking. His request was denied but he will be able to leave for free when this season ends.
The Major League Baseball Players' Association is expected to reject the league's proposal to push opening day back by a month, according to USA Today's Bob Nightengale.
Nightengale cites a pair of anonymous sources, who are said to have knowledge of discussions between the MLBPA's executive board and player representatives.
Earlier on Saturday, the league proposed pushing opening day back to April 28, cutting regular season games down from 162 to 154 and keeping last season's 14-team playoff allotment (expanded from the traditional 10-team playoff).
Additional components of MLB's proposal include the National League using a designated hitter and doubleheaders being shortened to seven innings, both of which were measures taken on an experimental basis during the 2020 season.
The MLBPA has "steadfastly rejected" a sustained expansion of the playoff format, Nightengale wrote, due to a belief that it will disincentivize teams from spending (in essence, more playoff teams means less reason to spend in a way to separate one's team from the pack).
It's possible that expanded playoffs, a universal DH and other things could still be agreed upon between the league and the players' union. But an important thing to know, as ESPN's Jeff Passan points out, is that a deal does not have to be reached on these matters.
The current collective bargaining agreement is active until Dec. 1. If the players and owners do not agree on any of the owners' proposed changes, the 2021 MLB season will go forward with an April 1 start date, Passan reports.
It’s going to happen. It’s a long season. Six games longer than it was in 1944-45, when Rocket Richard scored 50 goals in 50 games.
The losses you can accept. The shambolic officiating — not so much.
On a night filled with cheap penalty calls, matters came to a head when the Flames’ Dillon Dube went high on Jesperi Kotkaniemi, bloodying the young centreman’s nose and putting him at risk of another concussion.
Kotkaniemi was just turning toward Dube when the Calgary forward leaped into the hit.
There was a moment of confusion as players thought the whistle had blown and Ben Chiarot started to go after Dube. When the whistle finally blew, there was a brief grapple with Shea Weber — leading to Weber getting a roughing call, while Dube was given a free pass by the referees for a dangerous hit to the head.
That the no-call on Dube came on a night when the officials were calling every minor hook, tap and phantom trip was all the more galling, especially when it came on the heels of the hit Tyler Myers delivered to the noggin of Joel Armia.
The Patriots were reportedly one of the many clubs interested in securing Stafford's services, but the Los Angeles Rams closed a deal for the passer Saturday, sending two first-round picks, a third-round pick, and Jared Goff.
Stafford has some familiarity with the New England organization. The Patriots brought back Matt Patricia - Stafford's former coach in Detroit - to assist the coaching staff.
New England is coming off a disappointing 2020 campaign, missing the playoffs for the first time since 2008 after losing Tom Brady in free agency.
The Patriots also struggled mightily on offense, finishing 27th in points scored. Cam Newton struggled to regain his prior form and is not expected to return to the team next season. The former MVP passer was signed to a one-year contract last offseason but threw more interceptions (10) than touchdowns (8).
The Canucks went into Saturday night’s game against the Winnipeg Jets on a three-game win streak, looking like they had completely turned the corner from their awful start to the season.
Still, it was hard to shake the thought throughout their three-game sweep of the Ottawa Senators that, “It’s only the Senators.”
The Senators were expected to be the worst team in the all-Canadian North Division — they entered the season with the lowest payroll in the league and only made a few changes from the team that finished 30th in the NHL last season. Beating the Senators is certainly preferable to losing to them, but it’s hard to take those wins as indicative of how the Canucks might perform against the other, better teams in the North.
In particular, the number of shots the Canucks gave up to the Senators was alarming: 116 in three games, an average of 38.7 shots per game. Give up that many shots against a team with more offensive talent — say, the Winnipeg Jets — and the Canucks would be in serious trouble.
So they didn’t.
The Canucks put together their best defensive effort on the season, limiting the Jets to just 24 shots, their lowest total of the season. Most impressively, it didn’t come at the expense of their offence, as they still racked up 39 shots of their own.
Head coach Travis Green agreed that it was their best 60-minute performance of the season.
“I think it looked more like our team from last year, getting closer to the game that we want to see,” said Green. “Our team has to work extremely hard to win. That's the way we feel. We want to take away time and space and if we don't work hard and we don't skate, it doesn't happen.”
It made for a much easier night for goaltender Thatcher Demko. It was his third straight start allowing just one goal against, but he only had to make about half as many saves to do it as he did in his last start.
“You saw it in the last two periods, there were not a lot of pucks coming towards me,” said Demko. “Even zone time, maybe they get a couple cycles, but guys are shutting it down, playing with each other, making sure we're getting the puck back out of the zone and spending more time in their end.”
The Canucks will have some tougher tests ahead of them, including back-to-back games against the Montreal Canadiens to kick off February, but this game against the Jets provides more optimism than the Senators sweep heading into those matchups.
I’m hoping to see the same defensive effort in the future that I saw when I watched this game.
The Canucks opened the scoring on the first shift of the game. Alex Edler jumped up in the rush and raced onto a puck on the left win. He shoulder-checked to see who was with him; Blake Wheeler didn’t. As a result, Wheeler’s check was wide open, and worse for the Jets’ captain, his man was Brock Boeser. No shoulder check meant a flunked driver’s test for Wheeler and the 1-0 goal for Boeser.
Connor Hellebuyck pushed out hard to the top of his crease when Boeser got the pass, because you had to respect Boeser’s wicked wrist shot. That gave Boeser all kinds of room to cut to the backhand instead and tuck it into the open net. Hellebuyck is arguably the best goaltender in the NHL and Boeser made scoring on him look super easy, barely an inconvenience.
Was Edler’s pass to Boeser just a fortunate deflection off a defender’s stick? “Oh no,” said Boeser. “Eagle shocked the whole rink, I think. He made a tremendous pass there. I think everyone thought that he was gonna bump it to Millsy behind the net and he did the old Eagle there and looked off Millsy and passed it right to me in the front, so it was a phenomenal pass by him.”
Wheeler disagrees. “Edler was trying to throw that back-door,” said Wheeler. “[Mark Scheifel] was ahead of me, and being the centreman, he took that guy to the back-post. Unfortunately, the puck hit off [Josh Morrissey’s] heel of his stick and went right to Boeser in the slot.”
The Canucks did a better job of taking care of the puck in their own zone, but still had a couple of turnovers, one of which indirectly resulted in the tying goal. Jordie Benn tried to flip the puck up the middle and it was picked off by Nikolaj Ehlers, who forced Demko to make a save. The puck went out of play off Demko’s blocker, but the Jets scored immediately after the subsequent offensive zone faceoff.
Nils Höglander made it 2-1 later in the first, but his shift leading up to the goal was more impressive than the goal itself. He made a slick spin-o-rama on the zone entry to get by Morrissey, then made a power move to the front of the net, protecting the puck with his left leg to get a scoring chance. A moment later, he picked off a pass on the Jets’ breakout, then won a puck battle in the corner. The 5’9” Höglander looks more like a power forward than all the guys who are supposed to be power forwards.
Off of Höglander’s puck battle in the corner, Tanner Pearson got the puck to Bo Horvat behind the net. His attempted return pass deflected up and went over the net like Ryan Kesler, ramping up over Hellebuyck’s head. Höglander, like a proper power forward, had gone right to the front of the net and was ready to bat the puck out of the air and in.
Höglander cemented his power forward bonafides later in the second period, responding to repeated crosschecks to the back from Scheifele with a swing of his elbow, which is something we’ve seen from him in the SHL. Surprisingly, the referees didn’t call the elbow, but actually called a crosschecking penalty on Scheifele, evened up with a penalty on Tanner Pearson, who was delivering a few crosschecks of his own.
After Demko shut the door on a late first-period push by the Jets, Zack MacEwen gave the Canucks a 3-1 lead in the second. He jumped on the ice for Boeser on a line change, carried the puck in, dropped the puck to J.T. Miller, then got to the front of the net. Miller made a move on Ehlers, then set up a Benn one-timer that MacEwen tipped just under the bar where the bartender keeps his shotgun.
The Canucks’ power play went 0-for-3, but got some good looks, including from the second power play unit. Pettersson got a one-timer opportunity from his favourite spot at the top of the right faceoff circle, but, like so many times this season, his stick shattered: the blade of his stick and the puck both took off to the end boards, with his blade winning the race.
Nate Schmidt nearly had an own goal in the second. Fortunately, Demko snagged the puck with his glove when it deflected off Schmidt’s stick in front. Good thing, because it would have undone a solid game for Schmidt, who had a team-high seven shots on goal, blocked three shots, and played a solid shutdown game matched up against the Jets’ top line: the Jets didn’t have a single shot on goal when Schmidt was on the ice against Kyle Connor, Mark Scheifele, and Blake Wheeler at 5-on-5.
Late in the third period, Schmidt gave a master class on how to slide on the ice to break up a 2-on-1 — Tyler Myers, take notes! He perfectly read Ehlers’ intentions and timed his slide to the ice perfectly to get his outstretched stick on the attempted pass.
Schmidt even picked up a point, albeit on an empty net goal. He won the puck behind the net off Scheifele, then rung it around the boards, where it hit a broken stick, leaving it perfectly for Boeser to skate onto. He hit the empty net from distance for his league-leading 8th goal of the season.
Through 11 games, Boeser has already scored half as many goals as he scored all of last season. Sure, the last goal was into an empty net, but that’s also a great sign, that Green wants him on the ice defending a lead. A rejuvenated, sniping Boeser is tremendously exciting for Canucks fans.
“Even last year, I think I was still learning stuff about my body from past injuries and different exercises I need to do to prep,” said Boeser. “I'm feeling really good right now. I feel like I know what I need to do before each and every practice and game to stay on top of my body and I feel like it's showing on the ice.”
WINNIPEG – We would say hell froze over, but then Winnipeg is always frozen this time of year and it has been a hellish place for the Vancouver Canucks since the Jets returned from exile a decade ago. So, Saturday, maybe hell thawed.
The Canucks, who had lost 10 straight games to the Jets and eight in a row in Winnipeg, not only beat the Jets 4-1, but dominated them over the final two periods to extend their winning streak to four games.
Vancouver accomplished more in this one road victory than it did sweeping three home games this week against the hapless Ottawa Senators. The Jets are so not like the Sens. But the Canucks outshot them 31-11 after the opening period and scored as many goals in one night at MTS Place as they had over the last six years.
At 6-5, the Canucks are back above .500 for the first time since opening night and moved two points clear of the Jets in the Canadian playoff race.
“Yeah, we know that we haven't won here for a while,” Canucks coach Travis Green told reporters on Zoom after what could be a seminal victory. “We've had some close games in here, we've had some good games in our building. I think we've had some pretty intense games against this team, and they're a good hockey team. But it doesn't feel like we couldn't beat this team.
“Tonight, all we wanted to worry about was our game. I think the media makes a little bit more out of streaks like that than players or coaches. But it's definitely nice to come in here and get a win because even though you don't talk about it, the players know. I know.”
And now they know they can beat the Jets, whose formidable forwards and heavy game had always given the Canucks trouble.
Brock Boeser scored just 29 seconds into the game and again into an empty net for a victory that launches the Canucks to Montreal for back-to-back games Monday and Tuesday against the Montreal Canadiens.
The Habs may not recognize the Canucks as the team they saw last week in Vancouver, where Montreal won two out of three games and pumped in 17 goals amid slack defending and an epidemic of Canuck turnovers.
“I’m sure you guys can see it just watching the games,” Vancouver goalie Thatcher Demko said of the dramatic uptick in systems play. “We’re starting to get some of that chemistry we were talking about. When guys are on the same page, everything just kind of moves a little bit smoother and you start building confidence that way because you can kind of trust the guy next to you a little bit more.”
BROCK-STAR
After a rib injury and 12-game goal slump at the end of last season left Boeser with just 16 goals for the campaign, the Canucks winger suddenly leads the NHL with eight in 2021, one goal ahead of Mikko Rantanen and Connor McDavid.
“I think the last year -- I've said it a lot -- it was a learning experience,” Boeser said. “I think I was in my head the most I've ever been in my head in my hockey career. This year is a fresh start and I just felt like I need to get back to my game, not overthinking things, just playing off instinct.”
He opened scoring Saturday by beating Winnipeg goalie Connor Hellebuyck with a deke after the Jets left him unchecked, fooled by Vancouver defenceman Alex Edler, who appeared to be about to ring the puck around the boards to J.T. Miller but slung it back into the high slot to Boeser.
“Eagle shocked the whole rink,” Boeser said. “He made a tremendous pass there. I think everyone thought that he was going to bump it to Millsy behind the net and he did the old Eagle there and kind of looked off Millsy and passed it right to me in front. It was a phenomenal pass by him.”
CANADIAN, EH
Not only does Nils Hoglander play lacrosse, but the Swede is also pretty good at baseball, too.
The 20-year-old Canucks rookie has had a pile of good shifts this season but his first-period twirl against the Jets, on Hockey Night in Canada, may have been his best so far in the NHL. And not only because he scored at 8:17 to break a 1-1 tie.
Famous for a pair of “lacrosse” goals in Europe, Hoglander demonstrated his hand-eye coordination by bunting the puck past Hellebuyck after Bo Horvat’s pass hit Mark Scheifele and bounced off the top of the Jets’ net and into the crease.
But the previous 15 seconds were even more impressive for Hoglander, who on the zone entry embarrassed Josh Morrissey with a spinarama move at the blue line before taking the puck hard to the net while holding off the defenceman. Hoglander shot high, but seconds later stole the puck back as Morrissey tried to transition it up ice. The Canuck went hard to the boards with Morrissey, then spun away and beat Winnipeg’s best defenceman to the front of the net, where the cascading puck awaited.
It’s not Hoglander’s skill that has been most impressive since he forced his way on to the Canucks at training camp -- it’s how hard and relentlessly he competes for pucks and protects them once he has them. He makes plays in traffic, where he plays bigger than his five-foot-nine frame.
“I think a little bit I surprised myself,” he said of his NHL start, which includes three goals and six points in 11 games. “I think that’s important for my style to do the D-zone first and then take the offensive zone after that.”
BENN THERE, DONE THAT
We’re not saying Jordie Benn’s return from COVID-19 quarantine is the catalyst for the Canucks’ turnaround, but he has certainly been the catalyst for defence partner Quinn Hughes stabilizing his game and playing with more measure.
A healthy scratch for much of last season and expected to be an extra at the start of this one had he been healthy, Benn has had his best week since joining the Canucks as a free agent in 2019.
Benn’s point shot was deflected in by Zack MacEwen in the second period.
In five games since Green inserted Benn into the lineup on his off-side, to the right of Hughes, the Canucks have outscored opponents 5-0 with the defencemen on the ice together at five-on-five. Before Benn, Hughes was outscored 12-6 at even-strength while playing with a variety of partners.
“He’s a smart guy,” Green said of Benn before the trip. “He’s been calm with the puck, which we’ve liked. He has bought himself some time with the puck. I think he’s bought Quinn a little time, as well. He’s been a good fit with Quinn.”
Last year, Benn couldn’t find a fit with anyone. Now, the 33-year-old is a steadying influence alongside a potential Norris Trophy candidate.
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, 6. He got the game’s first Grade A scoring chance shot, a tip off an outside shot by Slater Koekkoek. Failed to drain a one-timer off a McDavid pass in the first, but did get off a dangerous shot. He set up Archibald with a sweet feed late in regulation time. He had a few iffy moments on defence, just like the rest of his line.
Jesse Puljujarvi, 4. He didn’t get enough done this game. He looked tentative on the big line. He turned over the puck to set off the sequence of pain on Toronto’s second goal, one that saw a number of fumbles and missed plays on defence by the top line and Darnell Nurse. He set up McDavid later in the second with a fine pass for a dangerous shot. He was benched for a few shifts late in the game with the score tied.
Leon Draisaitl, 8. He worked his heart out all game. One of the best hustle efforts of his career. He made a sweet backhand feed on Kahun’s goal. He came back full speed on a back check late in the second, likely stopping a Toronto goal. I loved his play on McDavid’s winner, as he was looking off the pass to McDavid, opening up the passing lane and was able to slip it through.
Kailer Yamamoto, 6. He was having a quiet game but drew a penalty on Nylander in the second, leading to McDavid’s spectacular goal. He gave that penalty with a reach in foul in the third. He got off a tricky slot shot off a Kahun pass in the third.
Dominik Kahun, 7. He was a key player on Edmonton’s best line at even strength. In his first nine Oilers games, Kahun had often looked dangerous on the attack, putting up seven Grade A scoring chance shots, but not one goal. But on first good chance this year he went high to beat Frederik Andersen, putting the puck where momma keeps the cookies, as the famous Edmonton minor hockey coach Jim Fleming likes to say.
LOS ANGELES — The Detroit Lions are trading quarterback Matthew Stafford to the Los Angeles Rams in exchange for quarterback Jared Goff, two future first-round picks and a third-round pick, a person with knowledge of the deal tells The Associated Press.
The person spoke on condition of anonymity Saturday night because the deal has not been completed. ESPN first reported the swap, which will include the Rams' first-round picks in 2022 and 2023, along with their third-round pick this year.
The blockbuster trade of two starting quarterbacks and former No. 1 overall draft picks will provide a change of scenery for two players who probably need it.
Stafford asked to be traded shortly after the current season ended with the Lions' third straight double-digit losing record. He has been one of the NFL's most prolific passers during his 12-year career spent entirely in Detroit, but has never won a playoff game.
Meanwhile, the Rams' coaching staff and front office have publicly expressed a clear loss of confidence in Goff in recent weeks, even after Los Angeles earned its third playoff berth and posted its fourth straight winning record during his four years under coach Sean McVay. Goff also led the Rams to the Super Bowl after the 2018 season.
Stafford, who turns 33 in February, has two years left on a $135 million, five-year contract.
The Lions had several offers for Stafford, and they all included first-round picks, according to another person with direct knowledge of the situation who spoke on condition of anonymity because those details were not announced.
Stafford was made aware of the teams who wanted to acquire him, and the Rams were one of the franchises he was excited about potentially joining, according to the person.
Stafford is new to the Rams, but he already has friends and a place to stay on the West Coast: Stafford owns an estate in Newport Coast, and he is a childhood friend and former high school teammate of Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw.
The Rams didn't immediately confirm the trade, but their official Twitter account tweeted at Kershaw, asking him: ``Have you heard from an old friend today?''
The familiarity of these two franchises' front offices likely helped the difficult deal: New Detroit general manager Brad Holmes just left his job as the Rams' director of college scouting under Snead earlier this month.
Goff is about to start a four-year, $134 million contract with $110 million guaranteed — but just like longtime teammate Todd Gurley, he is leaving the Rams before his huge contract extension even begins.
Goff has been a steady winner since McVay's arrival, but his high propensity for turnovers and lack of improvement over the past two seasons led McVay and general manager Les Snead to speak openly of a future without Goff in recent weeks.
Goff was the most recent first-round pick made by the Rams back in 2016. Snead has now traded away his top pick or moved back in seven consecutive drafts, making bold moves to acquire veteran talent including All-Pro cornerback Jalen Ramsey.
Stafford is leaving downtrodden Detroit and heading to sunny Los Angeles with a chance to take the controls of a team that could be a Super Bowl contender next season.
The Rams went 10-6 and beat NFC West champion Seattle in the playoffs before losing at Green Bay. Stafford also appears to be a clear upgrade at the most important position for McVay, whose reputation as an offensive mastermind has taken several hits over the past two years while Goff and a stagnant skill-position talent pool struggled to execute his schemes effectively.
Goff frequently appeared to be a budding star in his first two seasons under McVay when the Rams ranked first (2017) and second (2018) in the NFL in points scored, but he hasn't built on that success. His 38 turnovers over the past two seasons are the second most in the NFL, and the Rams' inconsistent offence was largely carried this season by its defence.
Goff passed for 3,952 yards and 20 touchdowns — his lowest total since his rookie year — with 13 interceptions and six lost fumbles over 15 games last season. He missed the regular season finale with a broken thumb, but returned to play in both of Los Angeles' post-season games.
During the 2020 finale, Stafford surpassed the 45,000-yard mark in the 165th game of his career — the fewest games an NFL player needed to reach that total. He threw three touchdown passes in that game against Minnesota, raising his career total to 282 .
Like many of Stafford's accomplishments in Detroit, they were marred by a loss as the Lions fell to 5-11 last for their third straight double-digit loss season and his career record dropped to 74-90-1 in the regular season.
Shortly after last season, Stafford asked to be traded and spared from another rebuilding project.
The Lions asked him to wait until they hired a new general manager and coach, but luring Holmes from the Rams to run Detroit's front office and giving New Orleans Saints tight ends coach Brad Campbell a shot to be a head coach again didn't change his mind.
Detroit drafted the strong-armed Stafford out of Georgia with the hopes he could end the Lions' drought of just one playoff victory since winning the 1957 NFL title.
Stafford became one of the NFL's most productive quarterbacks, but went 0-3 in the 2011, 2014 and 2016 postseasons.
Indianapolis, Washington and San Francisco were among several teams believed to have expressed serious interest in acquiring Stafford, who earned his only Pro Bowl selection in 2014. Goff is a two-time Pro Bowl selection.
Staford was AP's Comeback Player of the Year in 2011 after bouncing back from an injury-stunted start of his career. He is No. 16 on the league's all-time list with 45,109 yards passing and 282 passing touchdowns.
Playing for a team that was often trailing, he led 31 fourth-quarter comebacks in his career and earned 38 victories with game-winning drives.
Detroit drafted Ohio State cornerback Jeff Okudah last year No. 3 overall, passing up on quarterbacks Tua Tagovailoa and Justin Herbert.
The Lions have the No. 7 overall pick this year, and now that they have a veteran quarterback, they may draft a player to improve an awful defence. Detroit's defence set franchise records by allowing 519 points and 6,716 yards last season, breaking marks set by its winless team in 2008 and ranking among the worst ever in the league.
Montreal Canadiens power forward Josh Anderson was pulled from Saturday's 2-0 loss to the Calgary Flames with flu-like symptoms, per Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman.
Anderson tested negative for COVID-19 and will be tested again Sunday. He skated 5:39 in eight first-period shifts but did not return to the ice for the second period.
Montreal acquired Anderson in an October trade that sent forward Max Domi and a 2020 third-round pick to the Columbus Blue Jackets. In eight games, Anderson has four goals, an assist and a plus-three rating.
Start time: 7:00 PM EST / 4:00 PM PST In Canada: CBC, CityTV (English), TVA Sports (French) Streaming: NHL.tv/NHL Live, Sportsnet Now
If you just saw the goal summary from the first game of the home-opening series, you may have believed that the Canadiens coasted to a comfortable 4-0 lead before surrendering two meaningless goals late. However, the actual story was a bit different, with Carey Price needing to make some big saves from a determined Flames team, and getting a bit of help from the metalwork behind him on a few occasions to keep the opponents off the board.
You would also have missed a feisty finish to the game that may set the tone for tonight. Seeing their position in the North Division plummeting, the Flames held a players-only meeting after the loss, and you know the consensus after all grievances were aired was that they needed to replicate the performance of the first period while bringing the same physical element of the final shifts.
It means tonight’s starter, Jake Allen, will have to be on his toes if he wants to run his record to a perfect 3-0 with his new team. He’s been up to the challenge so far, but a more composed showing from the players in front of him will give him the best odds of earning the victory. The Canadiens have displayed some exceptional special-teams play so far, and now the Flames are forcing them to get their even-strength game on the same level.
Montreal Canadiens projected lineup
Forwards
Left Wing
Centre
Right Wing
Left Wing
Centre
Right Wing
#90 Tomas Tatar
#24 Phillip Danault
#11 Brendan Gallagher
#92 Jonathan Drouin
#14 Nick Suzuki
#17 Josh Anderson
#73 Tyler Toffoli
#15 Jesperi Kotkaniemi
#94 Corey Perry
#41 Paul Byron
#71 Jake Evans
#62 Artturi Lehkonen
Defencemen
Left Defence
Right Defence
Left Defence
Right Defence
#8 Ben Chiarot
#6 Shea Weber
#44 Joel Edmundson
#26 Jeff Petry
#77 Brett Kulak
#27 Alexander Romanov
Goaltenders
Starter
Backup
Starter
Backup
#34 Jake Allen
#31 Carey Price
Injured: Joel Armia (concussion) Scratched: Victor Mete
There are a multitude of factors that can lead to a player being added to the COVID-19 protocol list, including an initial positive test that requires follow-up confirmation, mandatory isolation for persons exhibiting symptoms, required quarantine after being a high-risk close contact of another individual who received a positive test, isolation after a confirmed positive test result, and quarantine for travel.
Heading into Saturday night’s game, Phillip Danault, Paul Byron and Brett Kulak were the only three Canadiens players yet to score a goal.
Danault, who has three assists, is in the final season of his three-year, US$9.025 million contract with a salary-cap hit of $3.083 million. He is reported to have turned down a six-year, US$30-million offer from the Canadiens during the off-season.
“There are stretches in hockey … I think we’re getting the chances, it’s a matter of time when he’s going to put one in,” Tatar said about his linemate Danault. “I think he still does a lot for our team, for our line. He’s our centre, he makes a lot of plays in the offensive zone, or all zones on the ice, so he’s very important. He does a great job on the PK on our team. Maybe a goal is not there, but he’s a big part of this team. One time there are different guys producing. I think that the strength of our team is we have four lines where we can count on every line and every line’s dangerous.”
Start time: 7:00 PM EST / 4:00 PM PST In Canada: CBC, CityTV (English), TVA Sports (French) Elsewhere: NHL.tv/NHL Live
Once upon a time, there were two hockey teams. The first one was well-prepared from the get-go. Through hard work and constant pressure, they slowly pushed the second team into a corner. Then, all of a sudden, all of their efforts were undone by a silly mistake. From there, the tables turned, and what was once a winning hand quickly evaporated into nothingness.
Montreal Canadiens fans probably know this fairy tale by heart. They’ve seen it play out time and time again over the past two years. A last minute tally here, a short-handed marker there, and more flukey bounces than one can remember. But Thursday night, the role of the first team was played by their opponents for a change. Ten minutes of solid work was unravelled by a Juuso Valimaki penalty leading to a Brendan Gallagher goal, and from there the Habs drove nail after nail in Calgary’s coffin until the final bell tolled.
Now, they just have to do all over again.
Tale of the Tape
Canadiens
Statistic
Flames
Canadiens
Statistic
Flames
5-0-2
Record
2-3-1
53.4% (7th)
Corsi-for pct.
54.7% (3rd)
4.71 (2nd)
Goals per game
3.00 (15th)
2.71 (12th)
Goals against per game
2.83 (16th)
30.8% (8th)
PP%
32.1% (6th)
78.1% (17th)
PK%
76.2% (19th)
1-0-0
Head-to-head
0-1-0
Truth be told, despite what at one point was a 4-0 scoreline, the Flames offered the Canadiens their stiffest test of the season. The Albertans went toe-to-toe with the Habs’ vaunted depth and gave as good as they got, essentially securing a draw at five-on-five. It was special teams play — two goals with the man advantage and one on the penalty kill — that doused the Flames for the night. Apart from this, Calgary can take heart from many things: that it was their backup goaltender in goal, that Valimaki is unlikely to have two bad nights in a row, and that they scored two confidence-salvaging goals late in the game. All of this can serve as evidence in the Flames’ locker room that they are in this fight.
The thing is, so can the Canadiens.
Whether it was rust or the thrill of being home for the first time in weeks, the Habs that took the ice bore little resemblance to the team that systematically demolished the Vancouver Canucks not that long ago. The Canadiens especially had difficulty dealing with the Flames’ cycle game below the goal line, possibly because Calgary is the first team they’ve played all year that is actually capable of playing said cycle game. Sloppy transition passes made life more difficult for the home team, who were, quite honestly, somewhat fortunate to not have surrendered a goal in the opening 10 minutes.
But good teams find a way to win, and if plan A isn’t working, they turn to plan B, or C, or D.
In this case, plan B was some solid netminding from Carey Price, who turned away half a dozen good Calgary opportunities in that opening flurry. Plan C was the power play, making sure that the Habs entered the first intermission with a lead. And Plan D was the team realizing who they were, discarding the Rudy and smothering the Flames for 38 of the next 40 minutes.
Now, Saturday night, we’ll get to see what backup plans the Flames have in their reserves.
With David Rittich already seeing the net, odds are high that off-season free agent acquisition Jacob Markstrom will play. Dillon Dubé, day-to-day with a lower-body injury suffered against the Canucks two weeks ago, may also make his return to the lineup. Beyond that, the Flames’ deployment should be roughly similar to what the Canadiens saw previously. Coach Geoff Ward did elevate Milan Lucic to the third line occasionally on Thursday night, but it was far from a permanent move.
The Canadiens should likewise remain relatively unchanged. Joel Armia’s timetable for recovery is still indeterminate — as is prudent for a concussion. Beyond that, Thursday failed to expose any major weaknesses that could justify Victor Mete’s return to the lineup. One question that might exist is whether Carey Price will start a second straight game. Two games in three nights is hardly taxing for a goaltender coming off a week off, but with five games between this Saturday and next Saturday. Claude Julien might be looking for a way to get Jake Allen between the pipes for more than just the one game in the upcoming back-to-back against the Vancouver Canucks.
Having seen that the Habs can be pushed back, the Flames will likely seek to reproduce their first period from Thursday, minus the goals against. The Canadiens will likewise seek to skip the effort from the first altogether and come out with the same energy that they had in the second. Whoever manages to accomplish their objective will likely emerge the victor.
Toronto Maple Leafs' Wayne Simmonds (24), Morgan Rielly (44) and Auston Matthews (34) celebrate a goal against the Edmonton Oilers during third period NHL action in Edmonton on Jan. 28, 2021.
JASON FRANSON/The Canadian Press
Jay Rousseau had been looking forward to the new NHL season. He’s a lifelong Montreal Canadiens fan, but life had got busy over the past few years, he’d cut his cable and hadn’t caught many games. But now that he’s spending a lot more time at home (thanks, COVID!), he’d decided to splash out on the streaming package known as NHL Live, which for $180 plus tax, gives hockey fans across the country access to more than a thousand games in a typical season.
Then came the blackouts.
The Habs’ season opener, on Jan. 13 against the Leafs, came through just fine. So did the second game, on Jan. 16. But when Rousseau tried to watch the next three – the first, against the Oilers in Edmonton, followed by a pair against the Canucks in Vancouver – his iPhone displayed the following message: “Your selection is not currently available in NHL Live due to local or national blackout restrictions.”
Story continues below advertisement
He didn’t understand. The fine print on NHL Live said it offered “national and out-of-market” games,” as well as the Stanley Cup playoffs. The Habs were playing in Edmonton and Vancouver, and he was at home, in the east end of Ottawa: Surely, he figured, that meant those games were out-of-market?
He figured wrong. In fact, Rousseau had stumbled upon a perennial source of frustration for Canadians: In a country in which watching hockey on TV is considered something close to a birthright, why do some fans have such difficulty figuring out how to catch their favourite teams?
NHL LIVE blackout territories
Fans who reside in a team’s home market can only access their games through regional broadcasters.
Vancouver Canucks
Toronto Maple Leafs
Calgary Flames,
Edmonton Oilers
Ottawa Senators,
Montreal Canadiens
Winnipeg Jets
Belleville
THE GLOBE AND MAIL,
SOURCE: NHL LIVE
NHL LIVE blackout territories
Fans who reside in a team’s home market can only access their games through regional broadcasters.
Vancouver Canucks
Toronto Maple Leafs
Calgary Flames,
Edmonton Oilers
Ottawa Senators,
Montreal Canadiens
Winnipeg Jets
THE GLOBE AND MAIL,
SOURCE: NHL LIVE
Belleville
NHL LIVE blackout territories
Fans who reside in a team’s home market can only access their games through regional broadcasters.
Vancouver Canucks
Calgary Flames,
Edmonton Oilers
Winnipeg Jets
Toronto Maple Leafs
Ottawa Senators,
Montreal Canadiens
THE GLOBE AND MAIL,
SOURCE: NHL LIVE
Belleville
“It’s just too confusing,” Rousseau said to me last week. He had sent a note to my editor complaining about being blocked from games without an explanation, so I called him up to get some details about his particular situation.
Then I jumped down a rabbit hole filled with hockey blackout trivia and patchwork maps of this country that would confound my Grade 9 Geography teacher.
When hockey first arrived on Canadian televisions in the 1950s, team owners were so concerned about the effect on ticket sales, games weren’t permitted to begin airing until the second period.
That’s why the English Premier League usually blacks out live coverage of its Saturday 3 p.m. soccer matches in Britain, in hopes that fans of lesser-ranked teams will go to games rather than staying home and watching better teams on TV. But the EPL has lifted the blackout during COVID-19, because fans can’t attend in person.
Many fans still believe that’s the rationale for hockey blackouts. Last week, Adam Reid, a Senators fan who lives in Newfoundland, tweeted: “How does the @NHL justify blacking out games IF WE LITERALLY CANNOT GO TO GAMES [followed by five ‘disapproval’ emojis]”. The tweet registered more than 2,000 likes.
Story continues below advertisement
But those fans are working from an outdated playbook. Decades ago, NHL owners realized the potential for higher TV revenue outweighed the risk of cannibalizing their ticket sales, so they began selling what are known as regional broadcasting rights to local channels, such as CHCH in Hamilton, which aired Maple Leafs games in the late 1970s and ’80s, and BCTV, which aired Canucks games.
Then the deeper-pocketed cable sports channels came along and scooped up those regional rights. (CBC retained its Hockey Night in Canada franchise, airing games across the country on Saturday nights, until Rogers Communications bought those, too, with its famous $5.2-billion deal for 12 years’ worth of national games.)
Here’s how the regional markets break down: TSN has the rights to Montreal’s, Ottawa’s and Winnipeg’s games; Sportsnet has Calgary, Edmonton and Vancouver; and the two broadcasters divide the regional rights to Toronto’s games. If you live in a team’s home market, you need to subscribe to their regional broadcaster in order to watch games that aren’t aired nationally – regardless of where those games are played.
That’s why Rousseau couldn’t watch the Canadiens play the Oilers or the Canucks, even when the games were in Edmonton or Vancouver: The term ‘in-market’ refers to where the viewer lives, not where the games are played. Unluckily for him, the Canadiens “home market” comprises the five easternmost provinces plus a small triangle of Ontario east of Belleville that includes Ottawa.
He’d thought a subscription to NHL Live was his ticket around those restrictions. Sure, he knew blackouts were a possibility, but he’d consulted a tool on the NHL Live website, “What Can I Watch?”, which allows users to enter their postal code to find out which games they won’t be able to see. But when he bought the service, before the season began, none of the Canadiens games were marked as being blacked out.
He’d also poked around the TSN Direct site, that cable channel’s streaming service, but hadn’t turned up much information about Canadiens games there.
Story continues below advertisement
“I’ve been doing streaming forever, so I’m used to looking up to see what I get, and for what value,” Rousseau said. “And you cannot determine the value of streaming for NHL games, no matter which provider it is. It’s not possible to figure out what you’re going to get and what you’re not going to get.”
He told me he was considering using a VPN, which would change his computer’s IP address and make it look to NHL Live as though he were outside the Canadiens’ home market.
He’d also thought about turning to pirate sites. “You can stream anything free, and the quality is getting better and better. If [NHL Live] isn’t user-friendly, what’s the point?” Still, he said, he doesn’t want to cheat. “I’d rather pay for the service.”
I contacted Rogers Sports & Media, which sells NHL Live in Canada; a spokesperson informed me the “What Can I Watch?” tool had not yet been updated with information for the current season. Then, last Monday, it finally went live with valid info, six games into the season. I also contacted a spokesperson for Bell Media, who sent me a media release outlining which Habs games will air on TSN this season.
Then, recalling my long-ago days as a customer service rep, I called up Rousseau and gently broke the news to him that, if he wanted to see the bulk of the Montreal games, he’d need to subscribe to TSN Direct. Even so, I explained, that would get him only 34 of the Habs’ 56 regular season games this season: The other 22 will air nationally, on Sportsnet or CBC.
“I’m willing to pay a little more,” for one service or the other, he said, “but give me all the games!”
Story continues below advertisement
That would seem to make sense. But that’s not the way we do things here.
SALT LAKE CITY — Bojan Bogdanovic scored 32 points and the Utah Jazz ran their NBA-best winning streak to 11, routing the Dallas Mavericks 120-101 on Friday night to sweep the two-game series. With Donovan Mitchell missing his second game because of concussion protocol, the Jazz improved to 15-4 with their 10th victory by double digits in the streak. Mike Conley added 22 points, Jordan Clarkson had 18 and Rudy Gobert added 17 points and 12 rebounds. Juwan Morgan had career highs of 12 points, seven rebounds and three steals. Luka Doncic scored 25 points for Dallas. The Mavericks have lost four in a row. HAWKS 116, WIZARDS 100 WASHINGTON (AP) — Trae Young scored 41 points, Atlanta held NBA scoring leader Bradley Beal to a season-low 26 points and the Hawks beat Washington in a game that saw Rajon Rondo, Russell Westbrook and Robin Lopez get ejected. The subject of trade speculation, Beal came in averaging 35.4 points for a last-place Wizards team that has been short-handed because of COVID-19 issues, recently had a half-dozen games in a row postponed and is now 3-12. Beal missed all eight attempts from 3-point range Friday and had just 13 points in the first three quarters. Beal drew one of no fewer than six techs whistled on Washington. Westbrook, who scored 26 points but repeatedly jawed with Rondo, and Lopez each drew a pair and were sent to the locker room in the second half. Rondo was ejected in the fourth quarter after his second technical of the game. John Collins added 17 points for Atlanta. 76ERS 118, TIMBERWOLVES 94 MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Joel Embiid had 37 points and 11 rebounds in 27 minutes, leading Philadelphia past depleted Minnesota. Tobias Harris added 17 points and 11 rebounds to help the Eastern Conference-leading 76ers improve to 14-6. Embiid made 16 for 18 free throws. Malik Beasley led Minnesota with 22 points. CLIPPERS 116, MAGIC 90 ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Paul George had 26 points, nine rebounds and five assists, Kawhi Leonard added 24 points and Los Angeles routed Orlando in the two All-Stars’ returns following two-game absences because of COVID-19 protocols. The first NBA team to reach 15 victories, the Clippers beat the Magic for the 14th straight time — a streak that dates to Nov. 6, 2013. Leonard made 8 of 15 shots, had a buzzer-beating 3-pointer at the end of the first half and passed to Reggie Jackson for another buzzer-beater at the end of the third quarter. George made 10 of 19 shots and 3 of 9 3-pointers. Terrence Ross led Orlando with 24 points. Once 6-2, the Magic lost for a 10th time in 12 games. NETS 147, THUNDER 125 OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — James Harden and Kyrie Irving each scored 25 points and Brooklyn rolled past Oklahoma City with Nets star forward Kevin Durant resting. Brooklyn made the move work — the team shot 57% from the field and scored a season-high point total. Theo Maledon, a 19-year-old rookie, scored 24 points and was perfect on six shots from 3-point range for Oklahoma City. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander also had 24 points. PELICANS 131, BUCKS 126 NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Lonzo Ball highlighted a season-best 27-point performance with seven 3-pointers and New Orleans held off a furious Milwaukee rally. Brandon Ingram scored 28 points, and Zion Williamson had 21 points, nine rebounds and a career-best seven assists to help New Orleans prevent the Bucks from erasing a 28-point deficit in the final 17 minutes. Eric Bledsoe also hit seven 3s and scored 25 points. Giannis Antetokounmpo had 38 points and 11 rebounds for Milwaukee. SPURS 119, NUGGETS 109 SAN ANTONIO (AP) — DeMar DeRozan had 30 points and 10 assists, Dejounte Murray scored 26 points and San Antonio ended Denver's winning streak at five. San Antonio held Denver to 23 points in the final quarter for its third straight victory, all at home. The Spurs and Nuggets are tied for fourth in the Western Conference at 11-8. Nikola Jokic had 35 points and 10 rebounds for Denver. Jamal Murray added 20 points. HORNETS 108, PACERS 105 CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) - P.J. Washington had 19 points and nine rebounds to help Charlotte avenge a loss to Indiana two nights earlier. Terry Rozier also scored 19 points for the Hornets, and LaMelo Ball had 16 points, seven assists and six rebounds. Charlotte won for the second time in eight games. Domantas Sabonis led Indiana with 22 points, 11 rebounds and six assists. KNICKS 102, CAVALIERS 81 NEW YORK (AP) — Rookie guard Immanuel Quickley scored 25 points off the bench, helping New York beat Cleveland to snap a three-game losing streak. R.J. Barrett added 24 points, and Julius Randle had 16. Darius Garland scored 24 points for Cleveland. The Cavaliers lost for the third time in four games. KINGS 126, RAPTORS 124 TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Harrison Barnes scored 26 points, De’Aaron Fox added 24 and Sacramento beat Toronto for its third straight victory. Pascal Siakam scored 32 points for Toronto. Fred VanVleet had 26 points and six assists. The Associated Press
TORONTO -- Up until the acquisition of Steven Matz from the New York Mets earlier this week, the Toronto Blue Jays had made all their off-season adds via free agency, using their spending power to reel in George Springer, Marcus Semien, Robbie Ray, Kirby Yates and Tyler Chatwood.
Given how their talent base is positioned, taking such an approach right now makes sense. Even though they made the playoffs in the pandemic-shortened season, the Blue Jays remained a work in progress in need of multiple pieces to legitimately contend. And while they pursued Francisco Lindor before Cleveland dealt him to the Mets and discussed Kris Bryant, Kyle Hendricks and surely others with the Chicago Cubs, addressing needs while keeping their prospect capital intact is clearly the preferable route.
At the same time, general manager Ross Atkins acknowledges that “there may be some predispositions, biases” toward keeping prospects because he and president and CEO Mark Shapiro both “grew up in player development and believe in it wholeheartedly.”
“It comes from just believing in player development, believing in players getting better and wanting our players to grow up as Blue Jays and then play for this city and country,” Atkins added. “So we do place an intense value on that. That could be factoring in, but we are certainly open to making trades and at some point we will have to.”
Hours after making those comments, proving his point, Atkins pulled the trigger on the Matz deal, which was a trade very much in line with the club’s recent approach to now-player adds.
Prior to the trade deadline last summer, the Blue Jays added Ray, Taijuan Walker, Jonathan Villar and Ross Stripling for lower-tier prospects well away from the big-leagues. Matz cost them Sean Reid-Foley and Yennsy Diaz, at the moment a pair of depth relief arms who were on the 40-man roster bubble, and Josh Winckowski, another right-hander who they left exposed for the Rule 5 draft.
Each trade carried a relatively low amount of risk, which is sensible when a team is on the rise. There’s reason to believe Matz can be a steady contributor this summer, and we’ll get to that, but even if he doesn’t, in all likelihood they won’t end up regretting the cost.
Such prudence has brought them to this point, but the Blue Jays will soon need to make higher-end adds through the trade market, too. And that’s when things are going to get tricky, because trading from the fringes of the roster and lower tiers of the farm system won’t return the type of top-end starter the team really wants and needs.
To get the next Blake Snell or Mike Clevinger that becomes available, the cost is going to hurt, requiring the likes of Jordan Groshans, Alek Manoah and more.
Making that transition isn’t easy because trading the wrong prospect at any time, but especially now, is fraught with risk. The Blue Jays need only to recall the July 19, 2000 deal that sent Michael Young to the Texas Rangers for Esteban Loaiza for a cautionary tale of how devastating a mistake can be.
While Loaiza delivered 6.3 WAR as calculated by FanGraphs in 75 games over two-and-a-half seasons with the Blue Jays, Young developed into a franchise cornerstone with the Rangers, delivering a career WAR of 25.3. The Blue Jays’ post-season drought doesn’t stretch 21 years if they keep him, I’d argue.
Even if such outcomes are rare, that’s why Atkins and his front-office posse have good reason to be judicious. They’ve spent a long time building a farm system that remains strong even after graduating the bulk of the current core.
With Groshans, Manoah, Austin Martin, Simeon Woods Richardson, Riley Adams and Gabriel Moreno, among others, pushing towards the majors, it’s understandable why a front office so rooted in player development would want to see what they become.
Similarly, those development roots play into an acquisition like that of Matz, who has more ability than his recent performance would indicate. Back in 2016, he was a 2.5-win pitcher, but hasn’t been able to match that over the past four seasons combined, including a dreadful 2020 during which he was a negative WAR performer.
Matz attributed some of his struggles to getting “a little carried away last year with starting to throw a little harder,” after noticing an uptick once play resumed from quarantine. While his sinker’s average velocity nudged up from 93.3 m.p.h. in 2018 and '19 to 94.5, it stopped sinking, losing nearly three inches of vertical movement, per data on Baseball Savant.
A 9.68 ERA and a grizzly home-run-per-nine rate of 4.11, roughly two-and-a-half times his career average, were the results, leading him to make regaining fastball command an off-season priority.
“I purposely was trying to get a little more carry on my fastball with some of the history of me throwing up in the zone, and stuff like that,” said Matz. “When I focus on commanding the ball, it has kind of the right movement that is just natural for me… Oddly enough, my four-seamer plays like a two-seamer and when I would throw this two-seamer, it would actually carry more like a four-seam. That was just some stuff I was tinkering with.”
Tweaking that repertoire, perhaps increasing the usage of his third-pitch curveball along with his changeup, may be something the Blue Jays raise with him. Matz said he’s had positive reports on pitching coach Pete Walker -- a master at building trust and presenting ideas to players as they want them -- and bullpen coach Matt Buschmann, and together they’ll work to tap into his game.
“I'm really looking forward to working with those guys,” said Matz, “and getting after it.”
The same goes for the Blue Jays, whose next step may be an asset-reallocation type of trade – moving money to make room for a signing, or trading one contract for another contract. If all goes to plan after that, they’ll then be on the hunt for impact talent at the trade deadline, when the club’s player-development roots will be challenged by win-now realities.
