LOCAL SPORTS
In action on Friday at the Bill Chisholm Memorial U13 AAA Tournament, the Antigonish Bulldogs went 0-2 with a 6-4 defeat by the Pictou Crushers and a 4-1 loss to the Valley Jets. In other action, Cape Breton West defeated the Valley Jets 6-4 and doubled Western Valley 12-6, then Western Valley defeated Pictou 4-1. Round Robin action continues through the afternoon at the Antigonish Arena, beginning with the Bulldogs vs Western Valley at 10:30 am, the Valley Jets against Pictou at Noon, and the Bulldogs vs Cape Breton West at 1:30. Semi-finals and finals are Sunday.
Rural League: Heatherton 6 St Croix 5 Pleasantdale 5 Outlaws 2
U18 Major: The Weeks Majors & the CB West Islanders begin a home-and-home series tonight at 6 in Port Hood.
NATIONAL SPORTS
Latvia recorded the first major upset of this year’s world junior hockey championship, shocking host Canada 3-2 in an eight-round shootout. Eriks Mateiko scored the lone goal of the shootout. He and teammate Peteris Bulans scored power-play goals in regulation time and netminder Linards Feldbergs stopped 55 shots over 65 minutes and all eight in the shootout. Calum Ritchie and Jett Luchanko scored for Canada, which has a win and shootout loss after two games.
Mitch Marner’s third career hat trick spoiled Todd McClellan’s Detroit coaching debut as the visiting Toronto Maple Leafs beat the struggling Red Wings 5-2. Derek Lalonde was fired by the Red Wings on Boxing Day and replaced by McClellan, who previously coached San Jose, Edmonton and L-A. Injured Maple Leafs star Auston Matthews missed a third consecutive game. The Leafs snapped a two-game losing streak while the Red Wings have lost four in a row.
Sean Monahan scored twice in his 800th N-H-L game, helping Columbus beat the visiting Boston Bruins 6-2, extending the Blue Jackets’ home win streak to three games. Dmitri Voronkov added two goals and an assist, extending his point streak to six games. Zach Werenski chipped in with four assists. Pavel Zacha and Charlie Coyle scored for Boston, which lost its second straight on the road.
Jalen Brunson had 26 points and nine assists, Josh Hart added 23 points and 13 rebounds and the visiting New York Knicks extended their win streak to six games with a 108-85 win over the Orlando Magic on Friday. Jalen Suggs, limited to 26 minutes due to foul trouble, scored 27 points for the Magic, who dropped their second straight and lost for the fifth time in seven games.
The Sacramento Kings have officially fired coach Mike Brown less than halfway through his third season with the N-B-A team mired in a five-game losing streak. G-M Monte McNair called Friday’s move a “difficult decision.” Assistant Doug Christie takes over as interim coach, with his first game coming Saturday at the L-A Lakers. Brown was the unanimous choice for N-B-A Coach of the Year in his first season with the Kings in 2022-23.
Olympic champion hammer thrower Ethan Katzberg has been voted The Canadian Press male athlete of the year. Katzberg made history at this year’s Paris Games by capturing Canada’s first Olympic gold in men’s hammer throw, and its first medal in the event since 1912. He won the event on his first throw of 84-point-12 metres. No other competitor reached the 80-metre mark.
Friday’s Schedule
World Junior Hockey Championship – Preliminary Round at Ottawa
Latvia 3 Canada 2 (SO)
Slovakia 2 Switzerland 1
Finland 3 Germany 1
Sweden 8 Kazakhstan 1
NHL
Toronto 5 Detroit 2
Vegas 6 San Jose 3
Buffalo 6 Chicago 2
Colorado 4 Utah 1
Columbus 6 Boston 2
New Jersey 4 Carolina 2
Minnesota 3 Dallas 2 (OT)
St. Louis 7 Nashville 4
PWHL
Toronto 4 Boston 2
NBA
New York 108 Orlando 85
Boston 142 Indiana 105
L.A. Clippers 102 Golden State 92
Minnesota 113 Houston 112
San Antonio 96 Brooklyn 87
Memphis 132 New Orleans 124
Cleveland 149 Denver 135
Dallas 98 Phoenix 89
Saturday’s Schedule (All times Eastern)
World Junior Hockey Championship – Preliminary Round at Ottawa
Czechia vs. Kazakhstan, 1 p.m.
United States vs. Latvia, 3:30 p.m.
Spengler Cup at Davos, Switzerland
Oulu vs. Pardubice, 9:10 a.m.
Straubing vs. Canada, 2:15 p.m.
NHL
Montreal at Florida, 1 p.m.
Edmonton at Los Angeles, 4 p.m.
Philadelphia at Anaheim, 4 p.m.
Seattle at Vancouver, 4 p.m.
Columbus at Boston, 7 p.m.
N.Y. Rangers at Tampa Bay, 7 p.m.
New Jersey at Carolina, 7 p.m.
Ottawa at Winnipeg, 7 p.m.
Washington at Toronto, 7 p.m.
Pittsburgh at N.Y. Islanders, 7:30 p.m.
Calgary at San Jose, 10 p.m.
PWHL
Montreal at Minnesota, 2 p.m.
NFL
L.A. Chargers at New England, 1 p.m.
Denver at Cincinnati, 4:30 p.m.
Arizona at L.A. Rams, 8:10 p.m.
NBA
Miami at Atlanta, 3 p.m.
Oklahoma City at Charlotte, 6 p.m.
New York at Washington, 7 p.m.
Milwaukee at Chicago, 8 p.m.
Phoenix at Golden State, 8:30 p.m.
Detroit at Denver, 9 p.m.
Philadelphia at Utah, 9:30 p.m.
Dallas at Portland, 10 p.m.
Sacramento at L.A. Lakers, 10:30 p.m.