Team Canada is getting some extra encouragement from its friends on the ice.
Ahead of Canada’s clash against the U.S. in the quarterfinals of the World Baseball Classic on Friday (8 p.m. ET/ 5 p.m. PT on Sportsnet and Sportsnet+), Hockey Canada sent the team a gift and a good luck message.
The video message featured Sidney Crosby, Jarome Iginla and coach Jon Cooper wishing the players good luck.
“They voiced their congratulations, that’s No. 1, on advancing, but reinforcing the fact that the job’s not done yet,” Team Canada manager Ernie Whitt said about the video. “It was a great surprise. It was nice to see, and I think the boys got a kick out of it.”
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Get a kick out of it they did, as the Canadian squad took the field donning Team Canada hockey sweaters that were handed out shortly before the pre-game workout. Outfielder Tyler O’Neill, in particular, seemed to have the most fun with it, cutting off his sleeves.
For captain Josh Naylor, the jersey is just another in the collection. Naylor has been wearing jerseys during batting practice all tournament, including a Wayne Gretzky sweater from the 1987 Canada Cup.
“I like representing great players, current and alumni players, so I brought a ton of jerseys I had back home,” Naylor said earlier in the tournament. “I don’t want to expose which ones I have just yet. This was one of them. I have, like, five more, all Canada hockey. I love this jersey. It’s really cool. I tried do three or four different eras, classic or (various) Canada tournaments.”
Jade Cargill had a lot of words to say about her WrestleMania 42 opponent, Rhea Ripley. However, when Ripley came to confront her, Cargill seemingly got exposed in an instant.
This week on SmackDown, Jade Cargill finally went to war with Michin, who tried to exact revenge on her for that attack a few months ago. The two women have been going back and forth for a while now, but things were finally put to rest on SmackDown, with the WWE Women’s Champion picking up a decisive victory over the veteran Michin. In the post-match promo, Cargill simply claimed that she wasn’t scared of Rhea Ripley, as she has never been scared of a single thing her entire life. She vowed that come WrestleMania, she will beat Ripley and prove why she is always on top.
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Thanks for the submission!
Rhea Ripley would then finally make her way out, and just as she entered the ring, Jade Cargill would exit, seemingly exposing her prior words as being false. For if she wasn’t scared, why would she run away in an instant? Cargill simply refused to engage while Ripley vowed to her that she would make Cargill her “b***h” at WrestleMania 42.
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It’s going to be interesting to see how things play out as they still have a little over a month to build up to their dream match at WrestleMania 42. Ripley is the overwhelming sentimental favorite, but whether you love her or hate her, Jade Cargill is undeniably the real deal in the ring, and there’s a reason why she is the reigning WWE Women’s Champion.
A lot will happen at WrestleMania, and their feud got off to a heated start as they seemingly broke the fourth wall, or atleast Cargill did. They had one face-to-face segment, and it looks like they are on a collision course to do that again before WrestleMania 42.
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Wood has been plagued by injuries during his career – including multiple knee and elbow operations – which have robbed England for periods of one of their finest strike bowlers.
He spent seven months rehabilitating his knee in order to be fit for the Ashes and lamented not being able to play some games for his county before heading to Australia for the series.
“I tried to get back at certain points but my knee wasn’t quite ready,” he said.
“It’s easy in hindsight, even if I was at 80% then at least the game would have given us an indicator of where I was.”
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He was thought to have been close to a return in the home summer, but ultimately did not take the field until England’s only Ashes warm-up game against the Lions at Lilac Hill in November.
He bowled eight overs but was only cleared to play in the first Test following a hamstring scan.
For now, although focused on his recovery, Wood said he has been thinking about life after cricket: “I’ve started thinking about other things, doing podcasts, doing my coaching badges.
“I’ve now started to try and think for the first time about what I should do if this doesn’t go well.”
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Wood – regarded as one of the fastest bowlers to play for England – has taken 119 wickets in 38 Tests since making his debut in 2015.
He was part of the 2015 Ashes-winning side, lifted the 2019 50-over World Cup and won the T20 World Cup in 2022.
Wakefield Trinity produce a dominant second-half display as they recover from 14-12 down at half-time to beat Leeds Rhinos 24-14 and reach the Challenge Cup quarter-finals for the second season in a row.
Mason Greenwood’s move from Manchester United to Marseille was contentious for both clubs, particularly when it came to those in the boardroom for the French side
21:38, 13 Mar 2026Updated 21:38, 13 Mar 2026
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A police report was filed after Marseille executives quarrelled over the decision to sign Mason Greenwood from Manchester United.
Marseille signed him from the Reds for around £26.7m in July 2024, in a move which divided many in France. The contention around his arrival was not limited to the wider football world, as there were many within the Marseille boardroom who were not happy about the prospect of signing him.
Reports in France have claimed an argument about signing the West Yorkshireman led to a police report being filed. It’s been claimed by La Provence a police report was filed by a club senior executive after sporting director Mehdi Benatia clashed with Cecilia Barontini, who had spent four years within the Stade Velodrome’s human resources team, about signing Greenwood.
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Club president Pablo Longoria is understood to have instructed Barontini to take charge of several administrative matters alongside Alban Juster, but she was “opposed” to the idea of buying Greenwood.
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She also expressed disagreement against Marseille’s move for Algeria international defender Youcef Atal, who had been handed an eight-month suspended prison sentence and a €45,000 fine for sharing an anti-Semitic video after attacks were carried out on the Gaza Strip soon after October 7, 2023.
All of these disagreements reportedly culminated in a “heated confrontation” in Longoria’s office, which led to an incident report being compiled by local police forces. In the end, the French heavyweights chose to sign Greenwood, who has made 73 appearances for the Ligue 1 side.
Longoria recently explained his decision making around Greenwood, when he realised there was an opportunity to sign the ex-United academy graduate. He strangely said he ran the idea past his mother, before he made his decision.
He recently told The Telegraph: “For me, it’s correct to speak openly about it. Creating taboos in life is never positive. For us it was a massive market opportunity from a sporting perspective where we analysed, very carefully, what really happened.
“In that case, having done due diligence and having all the information – and this is the first time I speak about this – with all the information I called my mother. And I said ‘what do you think, knowing all the situation?’
“And my mother, who used to work in the prison system in Spain, having a very innovative prison system model in Spain – she was recognised with the medal of the state.
“So I ask her, having all this information, ‘what would you do in my position?’ And she said to me ‘do it’. With all the information.
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“It was important because I wanted someone who doesn’t have the incentive of the sport, because the talent is there, that her only incentive is the good of her son. As a man, not as a president. And, for me, it was very important that she said to me, knowing all of this, ‘do it’.”
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Longoria went on to say: “I know that there is criticism. I know that the situation, it’s so many times, potentially reputational [damage].
“But, I repeat, if you think that you are taking the right decision, with the right level of information, and from a human perspective as well, because Mason, he’s a good kid, seriously. From that time, I sleep at night.”
Sky Sports discounted Premier League and EFL package
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Sky has slashed the price of its Essential TV and Sky Sports bundle for the 2025/26 season, saving £336 and offering more than 1,400 live matches across the Premier League, EFL and more.
Sky shows at least 215 live Premier League games each season, an increase of up to 100, plus Formula 1, darts, golf and more.
In the second period, not long after Matthews scored a power play goal to cut the Ducks’ lead to 3-2, the Toronto captain put a move on Gudas in front of the Anaheim net. Unable to lay a good hit on Matthews, Gudas extended his leg into Matthews’ left knee.
Matthews immediately went down in agony, holding his injured knee. He eventually had to be helped off the ice and down the tunnel.
Gudas received a major penalty for kneeing and a game misconduct. The NHL Department of Player Safety announced a five-game suspension for Gudas on Friday night following his hearing via conference call.
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Because Gudas only received a conference call hearing — as opposed to an in-person hearing — a five-game suspension was the maximum penalty he could receive. In a statement to ESPN, Matthews’ agent, Judd Moldaver, blasted the ruling and went scorched Earth on the Department of Player Safety.
“In light of the obvious severity of the play, I am very disappointed and shocked that the league would allow for such a ruling,” Moldaver said. “A phone hearing and five games is just laughable and preposterous. While the hearing process is pre-fixed in our CBA, that there was no further discipline is a reckless and ridiculous position for player safety. This decision results in a further loss of confidence in the disciplinary process for all players. Players and fans deserve better. The player safety department should be suspended.”
Toronto came back to win the game, 6-4, but the loss of Matthews is a devastating final blow that will likely end a frustrating season for the Maple Leafs. Matthews leads the team in goals with 27, and he’s fourth on the team in points with 53. The top heavy nature of the team’s lineup means all the stars have to be healthy and firing on all cylinders for everything to click, and that won’t be the case the rest of the way.
If the Leafs’ playoff hopes haven’t already been extinguished, losing Matthews for the rest of the season will likely do the trick.
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Maple Leafs’ address lack of response to “dirty” hit
When the hit first occurred, and Matthews was laying on the ice, none of his Maple Leafs teammates confronted Gudas in any way. Toronto has been flat for most of the 2025-26 season, but it was still shocking not to see anyone rush to Matthews’ defense.
In their postgame press conferences, assistant captains John Tavares and Morgan Rielly described the hit as “dirty” and said the team should have done more to defend Matthews initially. Rielly shouldered the blame for the lack of a response.
“I didn’t have a good view of it just because the puck was going the other way, but it’s on me for not responding earlier to Gudas,” Rielly said. “It’s a dirty hit. I didn’t understand how bad he got him in the moment. I take full responsibility for not being the first one in there or the first one to respond. … Ultimately, when your captain goes down like that on a dirty play, you have to respond as a group. I also take responsibility for not being the first one in there on the hit.”
There was a more physical response in the third period, when Easton Cowan fought Ducks defenseman Jackson LaCombe, and the teams racked up a combined 48 penalty minutes. Toronto coach Craig Berube appreciated that effort, but he admitted the other four players on the ice at the time of Matthews’ injury should have taken action.
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“We should’ve had four guys in there doing something about it,” Berube said. “It didn’t happen then, but I thought we responded in the third. It was a good response there, but we’d like to see everybody get in right away.”
Generally, it would be unfair to judge a team based on a 15-second stint following an ugly hit on its captain. However, Toronto has failed to meet the moment on numerous occasions this season, which is why it’s eight points out of a playoff spot with 19 games remaining. The lack of an immediate response wasn’t exactly out of character for the 2025-26 Maple Leafs.
Marcus Rashford could return to Manchester United in the summer, Tottenham draw up potential replacements for Igor Tudor and Arsenal prepare Leon Goretzka deal.
Rashford wants to stay at Barca, but talks have hit a stumbling block and sporting director Deco has proposed a second season-long loan to allow the Spanish side more time to pay off an option-to-buy fee to Manchester United. (Talksport), external
Arsenal are preparing a formal offer to sign Bayern Munich and Germany midfielder Leon Goretzka, 31, as a free agent in the summer. (Teamtalk), external
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However, AC Milan are also interested in Goretzka, who Bayern Munich have already confirmed will leave the club at the end of the season. (Goal), external
Liverpoolwill have competition from Barcelona if they pursue a move for Inter Milan and Italy centre-back Alessandro Bastoni, 26. (Sport – in Spanish), external
Arsenalcould earn about £1.7m if Juventus move for ex-Gunners and Poland defender Jakub Kiwior, 26, who joined Porto on loan in September with an obligation to buy for about £23m. (Sun), external
Mar 8, 2026; Buffalo, New York, USA; Tampa Bay Lightning right wing Nikita Kucherov (86) looks to control the puck during the third period against the Buffalo Sabres at KeyBank Center. Mandatory Credit: Timothy T. Ludwig-Imagn Images
Tampa Bay put it together in 60 minutes of winning hockey during its last outing, but the Lightning may have to be even better when the Eastern Conference-leading Carolina Hurricanes visit on Saturday night.
The East’s heavy hitters will meet for the final time this regular season after facing each other shortly after the Olympic break on Feb. 26.
On home ice in Raleigh, Carolina won that matchup 5-4 in regulation, avenging Tampa Bay’s 6-4 home win on Dec. 20 – two high-scoring affairs by skilled clubs who excel at putting the puck in the net.
Sitting in second place in the Atlantic Division, coach Jon Cooper’s Lightning score 3.52 goals per game (fourth-most in NHL) and won 4-1 Thursday night over the Detroit Red Wings.
It was just the home team’s second win in eight contests (2-6-0).
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Gage Goncalves and Jake Guentzel netted two goals apiece, and playmaking right wing Nikita Kucherov, who dealt one assist each to the wingers, achieved 1,100 career points in the win.
He became the second Lightning member with 1,100, joining Steven Stamkos, who notched 1,137 points in 16 seasons playing bayside.
Goncalves reached 10 goals to set a new career high for a season, just as he has in assists (13) and points (23).
“He’s always had (a high hockey IQ),” Cooper said of Goncalves. “It was just about how he was going to develop … what he can and can’t do. Pretty turnover-prone when he first came into the league, so he had to learn kind of the hard way.
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“Great example of a kid that’s fought through everything to get here and is doing a heck of a job.”
Since Feb. 1, Carolina is 8-3-0 but went 1-1-0 on its two-game homestand, beating the Pittsburgh Penguins 5-4 before falling 3-1 to the St. Louis Blues on Thursday night.
The Hurricanes rank sixth in scoring by averaging 3.46 goals.
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They lost for the first time in regulation at home since Jan. 3 and had a 12-game home point streak come to an end last time out.
Mark Jankowski scored the lone goal for the losing side on Team Canada silver medal-winning goaltender Jordan Binnington – his second straight game with a tally – and said he and his teammates have to be better in the middle period.
“We had a good start, but our last few games, our second period, we kind of had a lull,” Jankowski said. “We can’t have that. We’ve got to play a full 60 minutes. Every game in the NHL is a battle. Every night we’ve got to bring it for 60 minutes or else that’s going to happen.”
Coach Rod Brind’Amour said the Jankowski-centered fourth line, featuring left wing William Carrier and right wing Eric Robinson, was rather unfortunately the team’s best grouping.
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“They were our best line,” said Brind’Amour. “That’s generally not a good thing because they don’t play that much. We’ve got to get more out of our top guys.”
Seth Jarvis has tallied a team-high 28 goals, while Sebastian Aho and Andrei Svechnikov have 23 apiece.
Goaltender Brandon Bussi (25-5-1, 2.37 goals-against average, .899 save percentage) made 14 saves vs. St. Louis but lost his second straight start for the first time in his career.
Devin Haney will have the chance to add yet another belt to his collection this May, according to his father and trainer, Bill Haney.
The 27-year-old became a three-weight world champion in November last year, winning the WBO title in his welterweight debut against hard-hitting Brian Norman Jr.
Haney appears well suited to the 147lb scene not only because of his natural size, but because the division is stacked with big names and tough challenges – something the pound-for-pound star has embraced in recent years.
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While a rematch with Ryan Garcia, who recently won the WBC title to make it a unification, remains one of the biggest fights in boxing, Haney will instead look to collect another belt before making that happen.
Bill, when speaking to FightHype, confirmed that talks with Rolando Romero have made it over the line.
“Devin gonna put it on his ass, May [30th], Las Vegas. You heard it from me.”
It would be a struggle to argue that Romero is on the same skill level as Haney, but he brings power to the table and the intriguing factor of holding a win over Garcia, whom he dropped once before scoring a unanimous decision victory.
The fourth round of races in Formula 1’s new season, scheduled for next month in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, are no longer expected to proceed as planned.
ESPN, citing sources, reported that F1 officials agreed to cancel the events amid the ongoing conflict involving Iran.
The Bahrain race had been scheduled for April 12, while the event in Saudi Arabia was slated to begin on April 19 in the city of Jeddah. Bahrain and Saudi Arabia have both been hit by missile strikes during Iran’s retaliation after a series of U.S. and Israeli attacks on Iran.
Driver Fernando Alonso of Aston Martin competes during the F1 Grand Prix of Miami at the Miami International Autodrome May 7, 2023, in Miami Gardens, Fla.(Eva Marie Uzcategul T/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
Although it remains unclear what state the conflict will be in around the dates the races were scheduled to begin, F1 teams would soon need to start sending freight to the region in preparation for both events. The condensed timeline likely prompted decision-makers to reach a conclusion now.
There is no word on whether the Middle East races will be rescheduled for a later date. However, there is little room on the rest of this year’s calendar to move the events.
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The F1 logo is displayed during the Formula 1 MSC Cruises Grande Premio De Sao Paulo 2025 in Sao Paulo, Brazil, Nov. 6, 2025. (Alessio Morgese/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Given the uncertainty, F1 reportedly made the decision to avoid any disruption to the championship should a race be canceled later in the calendar.
The reduced 2026 schedule of 22 races also creates a five-week gap between the season’s third round in Japan and the Miami Grand Prix, scheduled for May 3.
Italy’s Andrea Kimi Antonelli (12), driving the Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team W16, leads Great Britain’s Lando Norris, driving the (4) McLaren MCL39 Mercedes, during the F1 Grand Prix of Saudi Arabia at Jeddah Corniche Circuit April 20, 2025, in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. (Clive Mason/Getty Images)
A request for comment from Fox News Digital to Formula 1 was not immediately returned.
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On Thursday, seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton said he was confident F1 would make the best decision.
“I know that [F1 CEO] Stefano [Domenicali] will do what is right for all of us and the sport,” Hamilton said in the lead up to the Chinese Grand Prix. “That is the great thing about having a great leader like him.”
The 2025 world champions of the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) and the Women’s Professional Rodeo Association (WPRA) were President Donald Trump’s guests at the White House Friday.
It marked the first time in more than four decades that a group of PRCA champions had been hosted at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. The last such visit came during Ronald Reagan’s presidency.
Friday’s visit featured several reigning rodeo champions, including all-around and bull riding champion Stetson Wright, bareback rider Rocker Steiner, steer wrestler Tucker Allen and team ropers Andrew Ward and Jake Long.
Members of the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo champions walk outside the White House in Washington, D.C., March 13, 2026, before meeting with President Donald Trump in the Oval Office.(Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images)
Barrel racer Kassie Mowry and breakaway roper Taylor Munsell were also among the guests honored by Trump.
Wright arrived in the nation’s captol in the No. 1 position in the all-around race. In individual events, Wright is in the No. 2 spot in the saddle bronc riding and is ranked tenth in the bull riding.
President Donald Trump takes questions from the media during a meeting with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz in the Oval Office of the White House March 3, 2026, in Washington, D.C.(Win McNamee/Getty Images)
Allen won the 2025 world championship, while Ward and Long clinched their first-career PRCA world title. The pair also earned their first NFR championship together.
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Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins, center, joined by the National Finals Rodeo champions, speaks to members of the press outside the West Wing of the White House March 13, 2026, in Washington, D.C.(Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images)
In a video shared by White House communications advisor Margo Martin, several guests in the Oval Office explained the different types of ropes commonly used in rodeo competition.
