Connect with us
DAPA Banner

Sports

‘We’re battling’: Canadiens fall short in Game 4 as coin-flip series continues

Published

on

MONTREAL — Let’s not pretend there was some deep lesson for the Montreal Canadiens to learn from their Game 4 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Both teams fought hard — against each other, and against the officials — and the one that needed to win more ultimately did.

The Lightning erased the first two-goal deficit of this series and won 3-2 to wrest back home ice advantage. It was the fourth of four games decided by one goal, even if it was the first that threatened to be taken completely out of every player’s hands by some remarkably incompetent officiating.

But in the end, the penalties cancelled each other out, both teams traded power-play goals, and the difference ultimately came down to an even-strength play that saw Nikita Kucherov turn and fire the puck off Brandon Hagel and in.

Advertisement

“I don’t know,” said Canadiens defenceman Kaiden Guhle. “Hopefully next time, the puck doesn’t go off a guy’s face and in the net.”

Could the Canadiens have prevented the one that went off Jake Guentzel’s stick with 54 seconds remaining in the second period? Ideally.

“We were in good position,” said Canadiens coach Martin St. Louis, who wasn’t wrong about that.

Jayden Struble was right there with Guentzel, but he just got beat by the player who’d previously scored 41 goals through his first 77 career playoff games.

Advertisement

Lightning coach Jon Cooper referred to Guentzel as “a weapon” on Sunday morning, and then he deployed him as one at four-on-four and watched him score his first of the series when they needed it most on Sunday night.

It capped a wild momentum swing that started with Max Crozier’s devasting hit on Juraj Slafkovsky and ended with Hagel’s fifth of the series 1:40 into the third period.

Maybe it never gets there if Dominic James doesn’t sell a phantom high stick from Oliver Kapanen after actually taking one that went unnoticed just seconds before. We’ll never know.

Just like we’ll never know if momentum lost and gained on both sides of all the other laughably bad calls from Brandon Blandina had any impact on the outcome.

Advertisement

The 37-year-old official sent Tampa’s Yanni Gourde to the box in the 11th minute of the game for crosschecking on a play where he barely pushed Montreal’s Mike Matheson. He evened it up 10:24 into the second by calling a phantom hook on Alex Newhook.

Then late in the third, with Matheson serving a deserved penalty for high-sticking Guentzel, Blandina took the bait of Kucherov diving into the boards on a shove from Jake Evans he called a cross check.

But hey, he evened that one up by sending Kucherov to the box with 2:33 left in the frame for a supposed slash on Matheson that never connected with any body part.

St. Louis admitted his team didn’t exhibit enough composure to win the game, acknowledged it would’ve been nice to lock down the 2-0 lead Cole Caufield and Zachary Bolduc gave it with their first goals of the playoffs.

Advertisement

But that was in between digging his tongue deep into his cheek and blurting out in both French and English that the Lightning are “a veteran team with talent,” and a team that is “good at making us take penalties.”

The part St. Louis was joking around about was the part to be taken seriously.

Same goes for Cooper, who could barely keep a straight face after he said he leaned on his experience to properly manage the game of emotions that came with how a game of this magnitude was being called in order to keep his team in control of itself.

“Is there footage of me (losing control)?” he asked.

Advertisement

Yes, Jon, but only of you screaming yourself hoarse after Corey Perry was split open from a stick that clipped him above his eye and never even got a glance from either official. Oh, and there was also that shot of you hollering for a major while Kucherov lay writhing on the ice following the light push from Evans he somehow miraculously recovered from in time to participate in the five-on-three advantage that followed.

This was Cooper’s 159th playoff game, and we’d not be talking about him learning to manage it better emotionally had he lost it.

We also wouldn’t be talking about how this Lightning team full of Stanley Cup winners need to avoid putting themselves in position to give the officials reasons to call penalties on them.

Even if the Canadiens do a better job toeing that line moving forward, it wasn’t the difference in this game.

Advertisement

This game was like every other one in this series to date minus the infused drama of bad officiating — a total coin flip.

The three prior to it were settled in overtime, and it’s hard to imagine the next three decided by wider margins.

Maybe it won’t go seven, but it sure feels like it will.

These two teams had 106-point seasons, and they have matched each other haymaker for haymaker, thunderous hit for thunderous hit, and goal for goal.

Advertisement

Literally! The score is 11-11 going back to Tampa, with each team holding 1-1 records at Benchmark International Arena and the Bell Centre after each going 1-1 against each other in their respective buildings during the regular season.

What have the Canadiens learned from it?

“They’re a tough team, and we knew it was going to be a tough series, and we’re right in it,” said St. Louis. “We’re in a battle. It’s a fine line between winning and losing in these games, but we’re battling.”

The Lightning feel exactly the same way about it.

Advertisement

And surely both teams will hope the officials will let them decide how it ends.

Source link

Continue Reading
Click to comment

You must be logged in to post a comment Login

Leave a Reply

Sports

MLS notebook: Injury-ravaged TFC facing issues after solid start

Published

on

Despite a decent start to the MLS season, Toronto FC finds itself in a bit of a predicament.

TFC (3-3-4) saw its seven-match unbeaten run snapped in a 2-1 home loss to Atlanta United on Saturday at BMO Field in a game that highlighted some major issues for coach Robin Fraser’s side. 

Toronto has gotten into a bad habit of falling behind, trailing in seven of its opening 10 games this season. The Reds rescued a point from a losing position in two consecutive matches (and four times in their previous five outings) prior to this last weekend.  

But there was no comeback against Atlanta. A poor start to the game laid the foundation of TFC’s third loss of the year as the visitors jumped out to a 2-0 lead thanks to a pair of second-half goals. 

Advertisement

Simply put, Toronto can’t continue to dig a hole for itself and expect to climb out of it. If TFC harbours any hope of ending its five-year playoff drought, it must start on the front foot from the opening kickoff and play from a position of advantage. 

“Because this group never quits, you almost start to expect that we’re going to come back and tie it,” Fraser said. “(But) this is a game that’s not always going to go your way. … The mentality we showed towards the end was excellent. But we need to see that from the beginning.”  

Another major cause for concern is the number of goals Toronto is leaking. TFC conceded eight times over the last three games, coughed up three goals in a match on four separate occasions, and has just one clean sheet through 10 contests.

Last year, Toronto boasted one of the best defensive records in the Eastern Conference with an average of 1.29 goals against per game. That average has ballooned to 1.9 per game in 2026. The 19 goals TFC has conceded already this year represents 43 per cent of the 44 goals it coughed up all of last season. 

Advertisement

“Obviously, there are going to be ebbs and flows and we have to be comfortable in the moments (in games) that we can’t get to the things that we normally can. And in those moments, we have to stay together and just make sure that teams don’t get between us and behind us. This is all part of the maturation process of this team, meaning we have some very mature players, but as a team, we’re relatively new,” Fraser said.  

Compounding the Reds’ woes is their injury situation, which is now beyond ridiculous.

Unavailable for Saturday’s match were winger Theo Corbeanu; defenders Nicksoen Gomis and Henry Wingo; fullbacks Matheus Pereira and Richie Laryea; DP midfielder Djordje Mihailovic; and forward Deandre Kerr. Corbeanu and Gomis have yet to make a single appearance this season, while Wingo has been limited to a 13-minute cameo off the bench in the club’s season opener in February. 

Toronto’s player numbers were so low for Saturday’s match that defenders Reid Fisher and Jackson Gilman along with midfielder Antone Bossenberry were signed from TFC 2, its reserve team, to short-term contracts.   

Advertisement

On top of all of that, centre back Benjamin Kuscevic and midfielder José Cifuentes had to be subbed off in the first half Saturday due to injuries. Kuscevic (groin) limped off after only 20 minutes while Cifuentes followed 10 minutes later due to a knee issue.  

Little wonder the Reds looked so disjointed for long stretches against Atlanta. 

“The building of the relationships, the rhythm and that sort of thing gets disrupted and it has nothing to do with the player who’s coming in because I do like all of our players and I think these are good players coming in when guys get hurt,” Fraser offered.  

“But I do think that the relationships and the chemistry is just a little bit off and takes time. So, when we have to keep chopping and changing, then it becomes difficult to maintain a rhythm.”  

Advertisement

TFC’s mounting injury crisis will test Fraser’s managerial acumen in the coming weeks as the long-term injuries to Mihailovic (the club’s top playmaker) and Laryea (its best player this season) robs him of two of his most important contributors.  

While other players will have to step up, Fraser has to find a way to navigate a difficult stretch of games, which includes a visit to BMO Field by Lionel Messi and Inter Miami, in which his options will be limited and will more than likely have to play some players out of position.  

• The Vancouver Whitecaps keep rolling. A fourth straight win was secured by Vancouver in a convincing 3-1 home decision over the Colorado Rapids on Saturday, allowing the team to push its record to 8-1-0. A sold-out crowd of 27,589 at BC Place watched the Whitecaps in the finale of their five-game homestand. Vancouver has only played one match away from home this season but is about to embark on an eight-match road swing from May 2 to July 25. 

• CF Montreal (3-6-0) is showing signs of life. After a terrible start to the season (six losses in seven games), Montreal has won two in a row, including a 1-0 victory over New York City FC on Saturday at Stade Saputo courtesy of Prince Owusu’s team-leading sixth goal. Montreal has two wins from two games under interim coach Philippe Eullaffroy following the firing of Italian manager Marco Donadel. 

Advertisement

• Jayden Nelson boosted his chances of making Canada’s World Cup squad with a peach of a goal in Austin FC’s 2-0 home win over the Houston Dynamo on Saturday. The 23-year-old winger opened the scoring in the 13th minute with a slick effort, curling a right-footed shot off the far post after cutting inside of a Houston defender inside the box. The goal was Nelson’s second in eight appearances for Austin since joining the team in an off-season trade from Vancouver. 

Editor’s note


John Molinaro is one of the leading soccer journalists in Canada, having covered the game for over 27 years for several media outlets, including Sportsnet, CBC Sports and Sun Media. He is currently the editor-in-chief of TFC Republic, a website dedicated to in-depth coverage of Toronto FC and Canadian soccer.

Source link

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Sports

‘Watching Virat Kohli cry was emotional’: Krunal Pandya

Published

on

NEW DELHI: The 18-year wait was finally over, and when it ended, emotions overflowed across every Royal Challengers Bengaluru player, especially Virat Kohli, who has been with the franchise since the inception of the league back in 2008. Tears of joy, kissing the trophy, holding it high with pride, and continuous celebrations marked the scenes as RCB lifted their historic IPL 2025 title.

Royal Challengers Bengaluru won their first-ever IPL title after 18 years, defeating Punjab Kings by six runs in the final at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.

RCB all-rounder Krunal Pandya reflected on the title win, calling it one of the most emotional moments of his career and dedicating the triumph to the fans and former skipper Kohli.

Speaking on JioStar’s “The Krunal Pandya Experience”, the all-rounder said the long-awaited trophy meant the most to Kohli, who struggled to hold back his emotions after the win.

Advertisement

“The ones who deserved it the most are Virat Kohli and the RCB fans. Virat has been an integral part of RCB from the first season. So, to win it and see him get emotional was special. Watching him cry was an emotional moment for everyone,” Krunal said.

“The love people have for RCB is incredible. That day, I said on the mic that whatever happens, we must win the trophy for the fans,” he added.

Krunal said fulfilling that promise after 18 years of waiting made the victory even more meaningful.

“I am glad I said it and that we were able to deliver in the final. The fans deserved this trophy more than anybody else, and obviously, Virat as well,” he said.

Advertisement

“Playing for the country is number one for me, but winning for RCB after 18 years and having my best season while contributing well has to be one of my top moments,” Krunal said.

Krunal also spoke about his evolution as a cricketer over the years.

“I have changed over a period of time, for the better. As you go through the journey, you learn. A lot of credit goes to my parents and the upbringing they gave me. But as a human being, who I am, has remained the same. I love cricket, still as excited and passionate to play. I have always been a family man. I love my family, kids, and my wife, who has played an integral part,” the RCB all-rounder said.

Pandya, who was bought by RCB for Rs 5.75 crore at the IPL 2025 Mega Auction in Jeddah, was retained by RCB for the 2026 IPL season.

Advertisement

In IPL 2026, RCB are currently placed second on the points table with 10 points.

Source link

Continue Reading

Sports

Winds of Valen: Beginner tips and tricks

Published

on

If you enjoy RuneScape: Dragonwilds or RuneScape in general, Winds of Valen is going to be right up your alley. There’s not much to do in terms of quests or storyline progression, but you can fish, mine, and craft to your heart’s content. It’s very simple to grasp, and the community is rather helpful.

That being said, here are a few beginner tips and tricks you can use to get started on the best foot in Winds of Valen.


5 beginner tips and tricks to get you started in Winds of Valen

Mine Tin and Copper to craft basic weapons and armor (sell for Coins)

Mine Tin and Copper to earn easy Coins (Image via SK Gaming | Fiery Dog Games)Mine Tin and Copper to earn easy Coins (Image via SK Gaming | Fiery Dog Games)
Mine Tin and Copper to earn easy Coins (Image via SK Gaming | Fiery Dog Games)

As you start your run in Winds of Valen, the first thing you’ll want to do is mine Tin and Copper. While this is not Minecraft (and you may not yearn for the mines), this is the best way to get basic armor and Coins. The Tin and Copper that you mine can be smelted in a 1:1 ratio to create Bronze Bars, which can be sold for Coins.

Advertisement
Sell Bronze Bars to make Coins (Image via SK Gaming | Fiery Dog Games)Sell Bronze Bars to make Coins (Image via SK Gaming | Fiery Dog Games)
Sell Bronze Bars to make Coins (Image via SK Gaming | Fiery Dog Games)

I would suggest you focus on Mining and Smithing for a while, as it’s the best way to get Coins without having to do too much work. Fishing and Potion Making are also great ways to get Coins, but the overall process is too long-winded. As you level up, getting Mining will become faster, which in turn will allow you to have more resources to work with and sell the finished product.


Sell anything you can’t use yet (including Power Gems)

Sell everything you can't use (Image via SK Gaming | Fiery Dog Games)Sell everything you can't use (Image via SK Gaming | Fiery Dog Games)
Sell everything you can’t use (Image via SK Gaming | Fiery Dog Games)

In Winds of Valen, the name of the game is resource collecting and leveling up. To that end, by the time you get your bearings, you’ll have more resources than you’ll know what to do with. After you craft what you need, you have two options: use the Bank to store things or sell for profit.

Use Coins to buy what you need (Image via SK Gaming | Fiery Dog Games)Use Coins to buy what you need (Image via SK Gaming | Fiery Dog Games)
Use Coins to buy what you need (Image via SK Gaming | Fiery Dog Games)

In my experience, selling is often better, as some of the best gear can be bought using Coins. Given that you’ll have to venture far and wide to get resources to craft better gear, being able to buy them without leaving the starting area is the best option available to you.


Use the Green Lantern at the center of the village to heal

Use the Green Lantern to heal (Image via SK Gaming | Fiery Dog Games)Use the Green Lantern to heal (Image via SK Gaming | Fiery Dog Games)
Use the Green Lantern to heal (Image via SK Gaming | Fiery Dog Games)

If you need to heal quickly, you have two options: Potions (which cost Coin) or interacting with the Green Lantern at the center of the village. This is a good option for when you’re just starting and don’t have Coins to buy Potions that heal you. Also, given that crafting Potions takes a long time, using this is faster, at least during the opening hours of the game.


Change Training Stance to level different skills

Change Stance to train different skills (Image via SK Gaming | Fiery Dog Games)Change Stance to train different skills (Image via SK Gaming | Fiery Dog Games)
Change Stance to train different skills (Image via SK Gaming | Fiery Dog Games)

What’s interesting about combat in Winds of Valen is that you’ll need to change Training Stance to level up certain skills. For instance, if you’re using melee weapons, you’ll need to change between Offensive (trains Attack) and Defensive (trains Defence). I’m still not sure how they affect combat (passively), but I’m seeing higher damage output and taking damage less often.


Defeat Goblin Beserker to get Goblin Axe

Goblin Beserker will be your first real challenge (Image via SK Gaming | Fiery Dog Games)Goblin Beserker will be your first real challenge (Image via SK Gaming | Fiery Dog Games)
Goblin Beserker will be your first real challenge (Image via SK Gaming | Fiery Dog Games)

At the start of your adventures, you’ll have access to conventional weapons (Swords, Bows, and Wands). If you enjoy going in close for the kill (and care not about blocking attacks), the Goblin Axe is perfect for you.

Each swing deals devastating damage to enemies, but you’ll have to earn it first by defeating the Goblin Berserker. I would recommend you attack it when others are in the fray. You will not be able to solo this beast.


Read more articles here: