Hockey Canada names 18 to world roster
CALGArY
Canada’s men’s squad will have at least five returning players from last year’s gold-medal team when they hit the ice at the 2017 IIHF world championship.
Hockey Canada has named its first 18 players, with a handful that were on the 2016 championship team.
Forwards Mark Scheifele, Matt Duchene and Ryan O’Reilly, defenceman Michael Matheson and goaltender Calvin Pickard return to defend gold, while Duchene and O’Reilly are in position to three-peat as world champions after also winning in 2015.
“It’s always special when you get to represent your country, and you can see it from the quality of our initial list of players who will join us at worlds,” said general manager Ron Hextall.
The 18 players selected consist of 11 forwards, five defencemen and two goalies.
The Philadelphia Flyers and Colorado Avalanche have the most players on the Canadian squad with four apiece.
Flyers forwards Travis Konecny, Sean Couturier, Wayne Simmonds and Claude Giroux made the roster.
Avalanche forwards Nathan MacKinnon and Duchene, defenceman Tyson Barrie and Pickard will join them.
Rounding out the forwards are Alex Killorn, Brayden Point and Jeff Skinner.
The rest of the blue line consists of Calvin De Haan, Jason Demers and Josh Morrissey while Eric Comrie fills out the goaltending duties.
“Between them, these players have made 17 appearances at this very event, including nine players who’ve come away as gold medallists for Canada, and they can play a big role in helping set the tone for this team,” added Hextall.
Head coach Jon Cooper will be joined on the bench by Gerard Gallant, Dave Hakstol and Dave King when Canada opens the world championship against the Czech Republic on May 5 in Paris.
The tournament has two host cities, including Colgne, Germany.
Canada will play an exhibition game May 2 against Switzerland in Geneva. MacKinnon
CLEVELAND
Life has given J.R. Smith perspective during a personally trying season.
The pursuit of a championship doesn’t compare to the path he’s travelled.
For the first time, Smith, the Cavaliers’ mostly misunderstood shooting guard, whose tattoos and hard-edged look mask his softer side, spoke in greater detail about his family’s ordeal following the premature birth of his daughter, Dakota, in January.
She’s been fighting from the moment his wife, Jewel, gave birth five months early, and Smith pointed toward a microphone stand in front of him to convey her astounding story.
“She was no bigger than this phone,” he said, recalling the first time he held his tiny daughter.
When she was born, Smith was sidelined with a broken right thumb that required surgery and kept him off the court for three months. Looking back, the injury may have been a blessing for Smith because it allowed him to be where he was most needed with a clear conscience.
But Smith, who missed 36 games while recovering, said his complete devotion and attention would have been with his loved ones even if he was healthy.
“I’ve thought about it,” he said. “My wife and I talked about it. I’ve talked about it with the guys. Had I not gotten hurt, I probably still would’ve missed the same amount of games. That’s no disrespect to
It’s another love game for Serena Williams: she is pregnant – and, based on the timeline she offered, she already was when she won the Australian Open.
A spokeswoman for Williams, Kelly Bush Novak, wrote in an email to The Associated Press: “I’m happy to confirm Serena is expecting a baby this Fall.”
Williams posted a photo of herself on Snapchat with the caption “20 weeks,” sparking all sorts of speculation on social media about whether she was, indeed, with child.
The 35-year-old Williams won her 23rd Grand Slam singles Williams Life has given J.R. Smith perspective during a personally trying season. His daughter was born five months early in January.
my teammates or this organization. But for me, my family comes first. And if you can’t accept that, then I don’t know what else to tell you.”
Smith’s now dealing with a hamstring issue that kept him out of the second half of Game 2 against Indiana. The Cavaliers and Pacers played Game 3 last night.
And while he’s determined to play and committed to the Cavs, Smith’s mind is never far from his daughter. She remains in the hospital more than 100 days after birth.
“You can’t separate the two because it’s life and for me it goes hand in hand,” he said. title at the Australian Open in January – a little less than 12 weeks ago. She has not competed since, citing a knee injury when withdrawing from tournaments at Indian Wells, Calif., and Key Biscayne, Fla.
She announced in late December that she was engaged to Reddit cofounder Alexis Ohanian.
Williams would appear to be out for the rest of this tennis season, a blow to a sport in which she is an unqualified star – and, of course, something that makes major titles easier to come by for other competitors.
The next major tournament is the French Open, which starts on May 28. Wimbledon begins
“The life I live is because of basketball and one of the reasons I’m able to provide and have a family the way I have is because of my basketball stature and what I’ve been able to do at this point in my life.”
Smith said she had her breathing tube removed last month and now weighs 4.7 pounds. Last week, Smith got to feed her with a bottle.
“I’ve got an unbelievable wife,” he said.
“I can’t say enough about her because she’s been there literally all day, every day. For her to let me do that or let me do certain things is really cool and I appreciate that.” in early July, and the U.S. Open in late August.
There is recent precedent for tennis players to return to action after becoming a mother. Kim Clijsters retired briefly to start a family, then came back to action and won Grand Slam titles.
Another former No. 1 and major champion, Victoria Azarenka, has announced she’ll be getting back on tour soon after having a baby.
Williams’ 23 Grand Slam singles titles are a record for the Open era, which began in 1968 – she broke a tie with Steffi Graf in Australia.
Only one woman has won more: Margaret Smith Court, who claimed part of her 24 during the amateur era.