Category: Sports

Canada wins first WJHC gold since 1997
GRAND FORKS, N.D. (CP) – The Canadian junior men’s hockey team put on a dominating display to win the gold medal at the world junior championship Tuesday with a 6-1 win over Russia.
After finishing a heartbreaking second the last three years in this tournament, Canada left nothing in doubt by scoring four times in the second period for a five-goal lead heading into the final 20 minutes.
The sellout crowd of 11,862 at the Ralph Engelstad Arena – the majority of them Canadian – began singing goodbye to the Russian team midway through the third period.
They erupted at the final buzzer as the Canadian players mobbed goaltender Jeff Glass, hugging each other after throwing their sticks and gloves in the air while Queen’s classic song We Are The Champions blared.
IIHF president Rene Fasel and Wayne Gretzky then presented captain Michael Richards with the championship trophy. Richards promptly skated it over to his teammates, who took turns thrusting it in the air.
Gretzky handed out the gold medals before players linked arms and sang O Canada in a tradition that began in 1982, when the Canadian team won in Minnesota, but had to sing the national anthem when it went missing.
”I’m so happy for the kids,” coach Brent Sutter told TSN. ”They played a hell of a tournament right from the get go.”
Russia had no answer for a Canadian defence that gave up only 19 shots on Glass.
It was the first world junior title for Canada since 1997, when the country capped a run of five straight gold medals.
Canada scored three power-play goals and its penalty killers held the vaunted Russian power-play to one lone goal in the first period.
The Canadian team played with controlled emotion and relentless determination.
Ryan Getzlaf, Danny Syvret, Jeff Carter, Patrice Bergeron, Anthony Stewart and Dion Phaneuf scored for Canada, which lost the 2002 and 2003 championship games to Russia.
”It’s an unbelievable feeling,” Carter told TSN. ”This is what we were going for and we got it now.”
Getzlaf, who was a standout in the game for Canada, and Andrew Ladd each had two assists.
”It’s amazing,” Getzlaf told TSN. ”We were the team on the other side last year. This is our time now.”
Bergeron was named tournament MVP while Phaneuf was chosen the top defenceman. Both were named to the all-star team, too, along with Carter.
Russian defenceman Alexei Emelin scored a power-play goal for Russia in the first period.
Star Alexander Ovechkin was used sparingly in the second period and at the start of the third period, he was out of his skates and in his track pants on the Russian bench because of a right shoulder injury.
Canada put the game away in the second period with four unanswered goals – two of them on the power play – and chased Russian goaltender Anton Khudobin at 3:33 after the Minnesota Wild draft pick gave up three goals on 15 shots. He was replaced by Andrei Kuznetsov.
Phaneuf’s shot from the blue-line beat Kuznetsov’s outstretched glove at 13:19 to make it 6-1 for Canada. Stewart tipped in a Nigel Dawes pass at 8:54.
Kuznetsov gave up a long rebound on a Sidney Crosby blast and Corey Perry chipped it over to Bergeron who had an open net at 7:53.
Carter whipped a sharp-angled shot from the boards by Khudobin to spark Canada’s outburst and send the Russian goaltender to the bench.
Canadian goaltender Jeff Glass didn’t face a lot of shots again behind a formidable defence, but he did make a glove same from close range on Enver Lisin after Carter’s goal.
Canada had a five-minute man advantage late in the second period after Toronto Maple Leafs draft pick Dimitri Vorobiev put his stick in Dawes’ face and was given a major and a game misconduct.
Emelin pulled Russia within a goal before the first period expired. His shot through traffic with 32 seconds remaining gave Russia a power-play goal.
Canada had taken a 2-0 lead on Syvret’s power-play goal at eight minutes. Braydon Coburn’s shot on net hit the end boards and Syvret collected it and banked it off Anton Khudobin.
Getzlaf scored 51 seconds into the game when he took a Carter drop pass and blasted it by Khudobin.
Canada killed off a 1:12 worth of a two-man Russian advantage early in the first period after Perry took an interference minor and Shea Weber hauled down Evgeni Malkin for a tripping penalty.
This Canadian junior team was the country’s best in a long time and arguably the best ever. The NHL lockout combined with spike in talent in Canadian players born in 1985 made the 2005 team a formidable one. Players who might not have otherwise been available to the Canadian team from their NHL clubs were still playing in the junior ranks.
The closest team in depth and talent to this one may have been the team in 1995 – the last time there was an NHL labour disruption – and Canada dominated that tournament in Red Deer, Alta.
Canada outscored the opposition 32-5 during the round-robin portion of this tournament to finish first in Pool B. A 3-1 semifinal win over the Czech Republic, in which Glass faced only 11 shots and fewer quality scoring chances, sent Canada to the final of this tournament for the fourth straight year.
While the team’s road to the final looked easy on paper, it wasn’t without adversity as defence Cam Barker was sent home after three games with mononucleosis, forward Jeremy Colliton was able to play just over one period with a knee injury and defenceman Brent Seabrook played through a shoulder injury he suffered on the first day of selection camp.
Sutter, a Stanley Cup winner during his 18-year NHL career and a former international player for Canada, guided the team with a firm, but intelligent hand.
This was Canada’s oldest team at the world juniors and with a record number of returning players from last year’s tournament in Helsinki, they knew the drill and what was at stake.
A dozen players on this squad played for Canada last year and suffered the disappointment of wasting a two-goal lead in the third period. The U.S. scored three times in the period to win 4-3.
Attendance at the 2005 tournament was 195,771, which fell short of the record set by Halifax in 2003 at 242,173. The hundreds of Canadians who made the trek to Grand Forks, two hours south of the Manitoba border, swelled the number of spectators in the stands.
Tuesday’s gold-medal game was as close to a home game for the Canadian team as it could be without actually being in the country.
The 2006 world junior hockey championship will be held in Vancouver, Kamloops and Kelowna, B.C.

Expos’ Move to D.C. on Verge of Collapse
NEW YORK – Washington’s new baseball team shut down business and promotional operations indefinitely Wednesday as its move to the nation’s capital teetered on the brink of collapse.
The decision by major league baseball followed the District of Columbia Council’s decision Tuesday night to require private financing for at least half the cost of building a new stadium. The September agreement to move the Montreal Expos to Washington called for a ballpark fully financed by government money.
“Yes, I think baseball is now in jeopardy,” Mayor Anthony A. Williams said.
A previously scheduled news conference to unveil new uniforms was called off and fans who bought tickets to watch the renamed Nationals next season at RFK Stadium can get refunds, said Bob DuPuy, baseball’s chief operating officer.
Baseball will not resume talks with other cities until after Dec. 31, the deadline in the agreement for Washington to put a ballpark financing law in place.
“In the meantime, the club’s baseball operations will proceed, but its business and promotional activities will cease until further notice,” DuPuy said.
He did not address where the team would play its 2005 home schedule if the deal with Washington falls through. It remains unclear whether baseball would move the franchise to RFK Stadium on a temporary basis, remain at Montreal’s Olympic Stadium or go to another city.
Williams had signed the deal nearly three months ago, and publicly celebrated the return of major league baseball to Washington, which hasn’t had a team since 1971.
“We had a deal. I believe the deal was broken, and the dream of 33 years is now once again close to dying. I would say close,” Williams said at a news conference Wednesday.
Council Chair Linda W. Cropp proposed the amendment, which was approved 10-3 after she threatened to withhold support from the overall package, which then passed In a 7-6 vote.
“I am not trying to kill the deal,” Cropp said. “I’m putting some teeth in it because I’m really disappointed with what I got from major league baseball.”
The September agreement estimated the cost of building the ballpark and refurbishing RFK Stadium at $435 million, but critics claimed it would cost far more. The proposal, as initially approved by the council on Nov. 30, called for Washington to issue up to $531 million in bonds to cover the cost.
“I am very confident that we are going to be able to work through this and that we will have baseball here,” said Councilman Jack Evans, who supported Williams on the original financing plan.
Bill Hall, chairman of the D.C. Sports and Entertainment Commission’s baseball committee, said, “We intend to deal with MLB’s concerns and stadium cost issues in a way that keeps baseball in Washington, and do so over the next week or so.”
Some of the communities that had lost out in the bidding for the team prepared to resume their efforts to lure the franchise.
“I don’t think we’ve ever stopped,” Norfolk group head Will Somerindyke Jr. said. “We always wanted to keep this area an option. If the opportunity arises for the Expos again, we are going to be standing there along with everyone else.
“Whether we could get something done by next year, I think that’s a stretch,” he added. “It would be very, very tough.”
Somerindyke’s organization has returned the deposits it collected on nearly 10,000 season tickets and almost 100 luxury boxes during its drive to get the Expos. He didn’t think it would be difficult to get those deposits back.
Officials in Portland, Ore., were uncertain how to interpret the developments.
“We need to wait to see how Major League Baseball assesses this so we can respond,” said Drew Mahalic of the Oregon Sports Authority.
Northern Virginia’s group had hoped to build a ballpark near Dulles International Airport.
“We hope that the District of Columbia will be able to fulfill the terms of its agreement and succeed in bringing Major League Baseball back to this region,” Virginia Baseball Stadium Authority spokesman Brian Hannigan said.
Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman went to baseball’s winter meetings last weekend trying to attract attention to his efforts to lure a team. But he could not offer a firm stadium plan.
“It’s just a glint in my eye, at this point,” he said.
Washington has lost teams twice before: The original Senators became the Minnesota Twins after the 1960 season and the expansion Senators transformed into the Texas Rangers following the 1971 season.
“Here we are back where we were five years ago ó the nation’s capital, the center of the world, a city of possibility, aspiration and ambition and opportunity, and a city that cannot do what it says it’s going to do,” Williams said. “I’m saddened that we can go so far in five years and step back so far in five minutes.”
The Expos became the first major league team outside the United States when they started play in 1969, but attendance at Olympic Stadium slumped over the past decade and the franchise was bought by the other 29 teams before the 2002 season. In 2003 and 2004, some of the team’s home games were moved to Puerto Rico to raise revenue.

Red Sox Win First World Series Since 1918
ST. LOUIS – The Boston Red Sox ó yes, the Boston Red Sox! ó are World Series champions at long, long last. No more curse and no doubt about it. Ridiculed and reviled through decades of defeat, the Red Sox didn’t just beat the St. Louis Cardinals, owners of the best record in baseball, they swept them for their first crown since 1918.
Johnny Damon homered on the fourth pitch of the game, Derek Lowe made it stand up and the Red Sox won 3-0 Wednesday night. Edgar Renteria grounded out for the final out, wrapping up a Series in which the Red Sox never trailed.
Chants of “Let’s go, Red Sox!” bounced all around Busch Stadium, with Boston fans as revved-up as they were relieved. Only 10 nights earlier, the Red Sox were just three outs from getting swept by the New York Yankees in the AL championship series before becoming the first team in baseball postseason history to overcome a 3-0 deficit.
It was Boston’s sixth championship, but the first after 86 years of frustration and futility, after two world wars, the Great Depression, men on the moon, and the rise and fall of the Soviet Union.
After all that, on a night when the moon went dark in a total eclipse, the Red Sox made it look easy.
Gone was the heartbreak of four Game 7 losses since their last title, a drought ó some insist it was a curse ó that really began after they sold Babe Ruth to the Yankees in 1920.
“We wanted to do it so bad for the city of Boston. To win a World Series with this on our chests ó it hasn’t been done since 1918,” Kevin Millar of the Red Sox said. “So rip up those ‘1918’ posters right now.”
Damon’s leadoff homer off starter Jason Marquis and Trot Nixon’s two-out, two-run double on a 3-0 pitch were all that Lowe needed. Having won the first-round clincher against Anaheim in relief and then winning Game 7 at Yankee Stadium, Lowe blanked the Cards on a mere three hits for seven innings.
Relievers Bronson Arroyo and Alan Embree worked the eighth and Keith Foulke finished it off for his first save.
The Red Sox get to raise the World Series banner next April 11 in the home opener at Fenway Park, with the Yankees in town forced to watch.
Boston became the third straight wild-card team to win it, relying on the guts of Curt Schilling and guile of Pedro Martinez. And they took it in the same year they traded away popular shortstop Nomar Garciaparra.
Led by Series MVP Manny Ramirez, Boston got key contributions from almost everyone. Backup outfielder Dave Roberts did not play in the Series, yet it was his stolen base in the ninth inning of Game 4 in the ALCS that began the comeback against Mariano Rivera.
And while second baseman Mark Bellhorn was born in Boston, no one else on the roster came from anywhere near Beantown. And the only homegrown players on the team are Trot Nixon and rookie Kevin Youkilis.
No matter, this win might make all of them as much a part of New England lore as Plymouth Rock and Paul Revere.
Or, as Red Sox owner John Henry said close to gametime: “People tell me this is the biggest thing since the Revolutionary War.”
The Boston win also left no doubt which city is now the most jinxed in baseball. It’s Chicago ó the Cubs last won it all in 1908, the White Sox in 1917.
Meanwhile, the Cardinals team that led the majors with 105 wins never showed up. The timely hitting, solid pitching and sharp baserunning that served them so well all season completely broke down.
Albert Pujols, Scott Rolen and Jim Edmonds, the meat of the order, combined for just one RBI. Rolen got it on a sacrifice fly, and it was little consolation as he went 0-for-15.
Ramirez, put on waivers in the offseason and nearly traded to Texas for Alex Rodriguez, was 7-for-17 (.412) with a homer and four RBIs. The left fielder’s biggest contribution came in Game 3, when he bounced back from a couple of errors to throw out a runner at the plate.
Lowe was loose from the start. While the Cardinals took batting practice, he sat alone in the Boston dugout, his hat backward and singing the little ditty, “If you’re happy and you know it, clap your hands.”
Lowe was equally relaxed on the mound. He gave up a leadoff single to Tony Womack, then retired 13 straight batters until Renteria doubled in the fifth. Renteria made it to third on a wild pitch, but Lowe fanned John Mabry ó who unsuccessfully argued that he tipped strike three ó and got Yadier Molina on a routine grounder.
At that point, the Cardinals were going quietly. About the only noise they made came when Molina, a 21-year-old rookie catcher whose two brothers catch for Anaheim, began yapping at Ramirez when the Boston star came to the plate in the fourth.
Red Sox manager Terry Francona quickly rushed out of the dugout to keep things calm.
Best known before this year for being Michael Jordan’s manager in the minors, Francona made plenty of wicked smart moves. Oakland’s bench coach in 2003, he took over after Grady Little was fired last fall. Baltimore and the White Sox also interviewed the man who managed Philadelphia to losing seasons from 1997-2000.
And while many Boston fans hollered for him to bench the slumping Damon in the ALCS, Francona stuck with him. Damon hit a grand slam and two-run homer in Game 7.
Facing Marquis, Damon yanked a shot over the right-center field wall and before he could circle the bases, the chants of “Let’s go, Red Sox!” began echoing from the upper deck.
Damon became the second Boston player to hit a leadoff homer in the Series. The other? Patsy Dougherty, who did it in 1903 for the Americans ó renamed the Red Sox five years later.
A single by Ramirez and double by David Ortiz got the Red Sox ramped up again in the third. Pujols threw out Ramirez at the plate, trying to score on a grounder to first base, and a walk loaded the bases with two outs.
Nixon took three straight balls and Francona gambled, giving his good fastball hitter the green light. That’s what Nixon got, and he drilled it off the right-center wall for a 3-0 lead.
Notes:@ Ramirez tied Derek Jeter and Hank Bauer for the longest postseason hitting streak at 17 games. … Damon hit the 17th leadoff homer in Series history. Jeter (2000) was the last to do it. … This was Jim Burton’s 55th birthday. A rookie in 1975 for Boston, he gave up Joe Morgan’s go-ahead single in the ninth inning of Game 7 against Cincinnati. Burton pitched only one more game in the majors. … The Red Sox led for 34 of the 36 innings. … Larry Walker put down his first sacrifice since 1991. He bunted in the first inning, but Lowe threw him out. … Boston teams continued to bedevil St. Louis clubs. The New England Patriots beat the Rams in the 2002 Super Bowl, the Bruins swept the Blues for the 1970 Stanley Cup and the Celtics won their first NBA title by defeating the Hawks in 1957.

Expos Era in Montreal Ends With 9-1 Loss
MONTREAL – The Expos era in Montreal ended with a 9-1 loss to Florida on Wednesday night, a game delayed for 10 minutes when players were pulled off the field after a fan threw a golf ball that landed near second base.
Hours after baseball announced that the 36-year-old franchise will be moved next season to Washington, D.C., a crowd of 31,395 showed up at Olympic Stadium for its final chance to say farewell.
It was the largest crowd of the year and about four times the season average. Fans were warned in the third inning that the game would be forfeited if anything else was thrown onto the field.
Three plastic bottles were tossed into left field in the sixth, one near Florida’s Miguel Cabrera. But the teams remained on the field and no announcement was made. The game was delayed just a couple minutes as the bottles were retrieved by a ball boy.
With two outs in the ninth, a fan jumped onto the field near Florida’s on-deck circle and was quickly escorted off by two security guards.
After Terrmel Sledge popped up for the final out, Marlins coach Perry Hill took the ball from third baseman Mike Mordecai and tossed it across the field to Expos manager Frank Robinson.
Montreal coach Claude Raymond stood alone on the field before he was joined by all the Expos as they waved goodbye to fans.
The crowd began standing when the Marlins came to bat in the top of the ninth. Fans, some with tears in their eyes, waved Canadian flags and held up signs. Some were still lingering in the stands 15 minutes after the game ended.
Peter McStravick, an Ottawa native and lifelong Expos fan now living in Boston, held a sign with pictures of commissioner Bud Selig, former team president Claude Brochu and Florida owner Jeffrey Loria, who sold the franchise to the other 29 teams to purchase the Marlins in 2002.
“Expos Hall of Shame,” read the sign, “Merci de Rien (Thanks for Nothing.)”
“It’s a funeral,” said McStravick, who made a five-hour drive to attend the game.
Former Expo Carl Pavano (18-8) set a Marlins record for wins, and Cabrera hit his 32nd homer.
Sun-woo Kim (4-6) lasted only two-plus innings.
Montreal has three games remaining this season, in New York against the Mets. The Expos also played their first game at Shea Stadium in 1969.
With Florida’s Jeff Conine at the plate in the third inning, Robinson came out of the dugout, summoned plate umpire Rick Reed and pointed out the golf ball.
Reed, the crew chief, waved all the players into the dugout as the crowd cheered. Security guards lined up along each baseline.
Drawing decent crowds was the problem for the Expos in recent years, prompting baseball to look for a new home.
The last major league team to move was the Washington Senators, who became the Texas Rangers for the 1972 season.
The Senators’ final home game was forfeited on Sept. 30, 1971. Fans rushed onto the field with two outs in the ninth inning, upset over owner Bob Short’s decision to move the team to Texas.
The Senators were leading the New York Yankees 7-5 when the game was declared a forfeit.
Fans were still streaming into Olympic Stadium during the second inning Wednesday night. The seldom-used upper deck was already filling with spectators as Kim threw the first pitch to Juan Pierre.
Wednesday night’s game was the 2,786th for the last-place Expos in Montreal, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. That includes 641 at Jarry Park, where the team started play in 1969, and 2,145 at Olympic Stadium, where the Expos moved in 1977.
The 1994 Expos were honored in a pregame ceremony. That team was 74-40, the best record in baseball, and six games up in the NL East when major league players went on strike, a work stoppage that ultimately resulted in the cancellation of the playoffs and World Series.
Several members of the 1994 team ó including current Montreal left-hander Joey Eischen, Florida’s Wil Cordero, pitchers Ken Hill, Gil Heredia and Tim Scott ó were on hand to sign autographs as fans were allowed to mill about the outfield before the game.
Usherettes Marie-Claude Girard and Dominique Duquette were red-eyed from crying unabashedly as fans filed past them on and off the field.
Many fans brought gloves and played catch on the field, others sat or sprawled on the field’s artificial turf. Security was increased, but the crowd cleared the field without any problems when the autograph session ended.
Recorded messages from former Expos Felipe Alou, who managed the team from 1992-01, Cubs slugger Moises Alou and San Francisco’s Kirk Rueter and Marquis Grissom, were played on the video scoreboard.
The small group of players were introduced to the crowd before they walked to the outfield wall in left-center field, where they unveiled a banner with the Expos’ logo reading, “1994 Meilleure Equipe du Baseball ó Best Team in Baseball.”
Kim Richardson’s rendition of “The Star-Spangled Banner” was initially greeted with boos. Applause soon drowned out the jeers.
Montreal’s Tony Batista took an extended curtain call after he came out of the game following the fifth inning. Batista, whose 32 home runs set a team record for third basemen, stepped out of the dugout and thrust both arms up high to the delight of the crowd.
The fans also gave ace Livan Hernandez a loud ovation, as well as the team’s English and French broadcasters when they were shown on the video scoreboard during the game.

National Hockey League Locks Out Players
NEW YORK – No shots, no saves, no goals. The National Hockey League locked out its players Thursday, threatening to keep the sport off the ice for the entire 2004-05 season and perhaps beyond in an effort by management to gain massive economic change.
After the long-expected decision was approved unanimously Wednesday by NHL owners, commissioner Gary Bettman repeatedly belittled the union’s bargaining position, talked about the possibility the confrontation could extend into the 2005-06 season and said the conflict has jeopardized the NHL’s participation in the 2006 Winter Olympics.
“When we ultimately make the deal that has to be made, we will then see whether or not there is time for a season or some semblance of a season,” he said. “If there is, great, and if there isn’t, then we’ll deal with the next season when it comes along.”
Bettman claimed teams had combined to lose more than $1.8 billion over 10 years, and said management will not agree to a labor deal that doesn’t include a defined relationship between revenue and salaries.
“Until he gets off the salary-cap issue, there’s not a chance for us to get an agreement,” union head Bob Goodenow said in Toronto, adding that players “are not prepared to entertain a salary cap in any way, shape, measure or form.”
Far apart on both philosophy and finances, the sides haven’t bargained since last Thursday and say they are entrenched for the long run, echoing words of baseball players and owners at the start of their disastrous 7 1/2-month labor war of 1994-95.
There is almost no chance the season will start as scheduled on Oct. 13, and Bettman told teams to release their arenas for other events for the next 30 days. Bettman said the season can’t extend past June, and the lockout threatens to wipe out the Stanley Cup final for the first time since 1919, when the series between Montreal and Seattle was stopped after five games due a Spanish influenza epidemic.
“The union is trying to win a fight, hoping that the owners will give up. That will turn out to be a terrible error in judgment,” Bettman said. “They are apparently convinced that come some point in the season, the owners’ resolve will waver, and I’m telling you that is wrong, wrong, wrong.”
NHL management claims teams combined to lose $273 million in 2002-03 and $224 million last season. Bettman said the union’s proposals would do little for owners, and said the six offers rejected by the union would lower the average player salary from $1.8 million to $1.3 million.
Goodenow said players had offered more than $100 million in annual concessions.
“The notion that we don’t have competitive balance is absurd,” said Vancouver center Trevor Linden, the union’s president.
Bettman made clear that declaring an impasse under U.S. labor law and imposing new work rules unilaterally was an option, but said it had not yet been considered.
“I think it’s pretty fair to say that we’re at an impasse right now, and my guess is that we’ve probably been at impasse for months, if not a year,” he said. “At some point when we’re at impasse, we could simply say, `We’re going to open, and here are the terms and conditions. Let’s go.’ It’s that simple.”
Goodenow said attempting to impose terms would be a “very, very ill-advised strategy” and predicted “the results of it could be catastrophic.” Bettman said the use of replacement players is not contemplated.
The 30 teams ó 24 in the United States and six in Canada ó had been set to start opening training camps on Thursday, the day after the expiration of the current labor contract. The deal was first agreed to in 1995 and extended two years later through Sept. 15, 2004. Bettman termed the extension “a mistake, in hindsight.”
“It of kind stinks, packing up and moving out of here,” Philadelphia right wing Tony Amonte said at his team’s practice rink. “I can’t say they weren’t preparing us for it.”
Some players are expected to sign with European leagues, and others could join a six-team, four-on-four circuit called the Original Stars Hockey League, which is set to start play Friday in Barrie, Ontario. Others could go to a revived World Hockey Association, which plans to open Oct. 29 with eight teams playing 76 games apiece.
Bettman said more than 100 employees from the NHL’s central staff of about 225 will be terminated, most on Monday.
The stoppage is the first for a North American major league since the 1998-99 NBA lockout canceled 464 games, cutting each club’s regular-season schedule from 82 games to 50.
It is the third stoppage for the NHL following a 10-day strike in 1992 that caused the postponement of 30 games and a 103-day lockout in 1994-95 that eliminated 468 games, cutting each team’s regular-season schedule from 84 games to 48. That lockout ended on Jan. 11, five days before the deadline set by Bettman to scuttle the season.

Canada wins World Cup of Hockey
TORONTO (CP) – Shane Doan scored in the third period as Canada defeated Finland 3-2 on Tuesday night to add the World Cup of Hockey to its string of recent international triumphs.
Doan’s goal 34 seconds into the third period stood up behind superb goaltending from Martin Brodeur as Canada ended the eight-team tournament with a perfect 6-0 record.
“That was pretty special, it’s something I’m never going to forget,” said Doan. “It was incredible, this whole experience has been incredible. It’s a dream to score that goal.”
Canada, which only a few years ago feared it had slipped a notch in the hockey world, now holds the 2002 Olympic gold medal, two consecutive IIHF world championship gold medals and the World Cup.
“This was an amazing group of players,” Team Canada executive director Wayne Gretzky said.
Vincent Lecavalier, one of the young players who led Canada in this World Cup, was named tournament MVP.
“With all the young players, we have a great future here in Canada,” Joe Sakic told CBC. “It’s nice to win some tournaments. …
“It’s just awesome to be a part of this.”
Sakic and Riku Hahl traded goals in the opening period and Scott Niedermayer put Canada ahead 3:13 into the second.
A spectacular goal by Tuomo Ruutu with one minute left in the second period sent the teams into the final frame at 2-2, but Doan broke the deadlock on the first shift of the final period when he banged a pass from Joe Thornton past Miikka Kiprusoff.
“Kipper didn’t play his best game, our defence didn’t help either,” said Finnish coach Raimo Summanen. “I’m proud of the spirit and the attitude on our team.”
It may have been the last top-level hockey available for a long time, as the NHL was set to lock out its players at midnight Wednesday unless a last-minute agreement on a new collective bargaining agreement is reached.
The checking line of Doan, Thornton and Kris Draper had a huge night, producing two goals and tying up Finland’s big line of Saku Koivu, Teemu Selanne and Jere Lehtinen.
“It was a total team effort and I’m so proud of the guys,” said Thornton. “It was four great weeks of my life and I wouldn’t trade it for anything.”
The Finns played a strong forechecking game and several times had Canada boxed in its zone, but the home side responded with a robust checking game of its own.
The difference may have been in goal.
A chanting, sellout crowd of 19,370 saw Brodeur shine in his return to the net after missing a game with a wrist injury. He had the edge on Kiprusoff as Canada outshot Finland 33-29.
“I felt great, my wrist didn’t bother me at all,” said Brodeur.
It looked like Canada may have an easy night when Sakic scored only 52 seconds into the game, taking a feed in the slot from Mario Lemieux and scoring on the first shot on goal.
But a tenacious Finland forecheck had Canada running around in its zone when Hahl tipped Toni Lydman’s point shot past Brodeur to tie the game at 6:34.
Niedermayer put Canada ahead on a routine shot during a rush down the left side that dribbled through Kiprusoff’s pads.
But at the 19:00 mark, Ruutu chipped the puck free in the neutral zone, sidestepped a hit by Simon Gagne and blew past Niedermayer to beat Brodeur with a shot just inside the post.
It was the first time in the tournament Brodeur allowed more than one goal in a game.
Spirited checking helped Canada open the third period by keeping the puck in the Finland zone and Thornton flipped a pass out in front for Doan to score his first of the tournament.
Finland was seeking its first ever hockey win in a best-on-best tournament. Its last major title was at the 1995 IIHF world championships.
The winning team got $1 million, to be split equally between Hockey Canada and the players, who are to donate the money to a charity of their choice.
Canada also continued the Lucky Loonie tradition, this time with a twist. Instead of burying a loonie in the ice at centre or under a crossbar, six of the coins were taped under the Canadian bench, one for each of the team’s wins at the World Cup.

ABC Calls Delay for NFL Kickoff
NEW YORK (Hollywood Reporter) – ABC and the NFL aren’t taking any chances with this week’s kickoff show, the first time football has had an entertainment-style revue since the notorious “wardrobe malfunction” during the Super Bowl halftime show in February.
There will be a 10-second delay in the telecast of the hourlong “NFL Opening Kickoff,” an otherwise live musical event from Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, Mass., and Jacksonville, Fla. The season’s first game has last year’s champions, the New England Patriots, playing host to the Indianapolis Colts.
ABC insisted on a five-second delay in the broadcast, according to Charles Coplin, the kickoff show’s co-executive producer and vp programing at the NFL. ABC requires all live entertainment programing carried on the network to have a five-second delay, ABC Sports spokesman Mark Mandel said. “That was in effect before the Super Bowl (controversy),” he said.
Added Coplin on his way to Foxboro on Tuesday to oversee the production: “I think it’s a precaution. I have no plans on using it. I would be surprised by using it, but there are always things that could go out of control.”
Performers include Mary J. Blige, Elton John, Lenny Kravitz and Toby Keith, along with a newly reunited Destiny’s Child.
Burned by the experience at the last Super Bowl, when Janet Jackson bared a breast during a performance with Justin Timberlake, the NFL took control over its entertainment destiny. The league now develops the content and works directly with the performers; it has control over song selection, wardrobe and staging, for instance. Coplin said the NFL wants to make sure that everything’s appropriate.
“(The performers) understand what’s appropriate and what’s not appropriate, and that’s very much a part of who we chose” to perform, Coplin said.
The NFL, which is always a ratings winner for ABC on Monday night, is going to face some tough competition when it bows Thursday. Leading the competition will be the premieres of “Joey” and “The Apprentice,” both on NBC.
But that’s not the only storm Thursday’s game and show will face. Coplin said it isn’t clear whether damage from Hurricane Frances, which hit Jacksonville over the weekend, will alter the plans to have Jessica Simpson sing from there as scheduled. Coplin wasn’t sure about that, but he had other weather-related concerns in mind, too. It isn’t supposed to stop raining in Massachusetts until Thursday at the earliest.
“We could really use a clear night and clear rehearsals,” Coplin said. “I don’t think we’re going to have any luck.”

Greece Captures European Championship
LISBON, Portugal – Greece won the European Championship in one of the biggest upsets in soccer history, beating host Portugal 1-0 Sunday on Angelos Charisteas’ goal early in the second half.
Charisteas scored in the 57th minute with a header off a corner kick from Angelos Basinas.
Giourkas Seitaridis went on a speedy run down the right and was stopped by a block by Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo, with the ball rolling over the end line. Basinas floated the corner kick into the 6-yard box, and Charisteas timed his run perfectly to outjump Jorge Andrade and beat goalkeeper Ricardo Pereira from 5 yards.
“We are the best team in Europe. This is a unique moment,” Charisteas said. “It’s the greatest moment of my career. When I scored, I thought we could not lose.”
The unheralded Greeks, a soccer outsider given little chance of advancing from a first-round group that included Spain, Portugal and Russia, had been to only two major tournaments before this, the 1994 World Cup and the 1980 European Championship, failing to win a game. Sunday’s victory came just over a month before Athens hosts the Olympics, from Aug. 13-29.
When referee Markus Merk blew the final whistle, about 15,000 Greek fans in the Stadium of Light cheered.
Eusebio, the greatest player in Portugal’s history, stood on the podium as 50,000 Portuguese fans watched in disappointment as their heroes received the second-place medals. Portugal also was in a major final for the first time.
In Athens, thousands of jubilant fans waving Greek flags and honking car horns poured into the streets. Thousands of fans, some crying and embracing, gathered in Omonia Square, many waving Greek flags and singing the national anthem. Some cried and embraced. Others spread out the national flag on the street and bowed in front of it.
No host had ever lost a European Championship final and only two have lost World Cup finals, Brazil in 1950 and Sweden in 1958.
“We couldn’t take advantage of our chances,” Portugal coach Luiz Felipe Scolari said. “There were shots that could have gone in, which would have changed the result. Unfortunately, they didn’t go in.”
Greece upset the Portuguese 2-1 in the tournament opener on June 12, ousted defending champion France 1-0 in the quarterfinals on a goal by Charisteas, then beat the favored Czech Republic 1-0 in the semifinals on an overtime header by Traianos Dellas, nearly identical to Charisteas’ goal Sunday. The Greeks did not allow in their final 343 minutes of the tournament.
Portugal, which dominated possession, nearly tied the score with 16 minutes remaining but with goalkeeper Antonios Nikopolidis out of position, Ronaldo lobbed the ball over the crossbar.
Dellas blocked Ronaldo’s shot with 10 minutes to go, and Nikopolidis allowed a rebound of Ricardo Carvalho’s 25-yard shot, but Portugal didn’t have anyone in front.
The game was briefly delayed with about five minutes to go when a fan dressed in black ran onto the field. Security chased down the man, who waved a banner with the emblem of the Spanish club Barcelona, then threw it at Portugal star Luis Figo.
Greece, led by Germany’s Otto Rehhagel, became the first team to win the quadrennial European title with a foreign coach.

Senators Force Game 7 With Double OT Win
OTTAWA – Mike Fisher scored 1:47 into double overtime to give Ottawa a 2-1 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs on Sunday night and force a seventh and deciding game in the first-round playoff series.
The Senators have been eliminated from the playoffs by the Maple Leafs in three of the past four years. Game 7 is Tuesday night in Toronto.
“Our crowd will be with us,” Maple Leafs coach Pat Quinn said. “Hopefully, we’ll be a bit better than we were tonight.”
Following a 2-0 loss in Game 5 on Friday, Daniel Alfredsson ó the Senators captain ó guaranteed his club would win Games 6 and 7.
“I don’t think you’ve seen the last of us yet (in Toronto),” Alfredsson said following a closed-door meeting. “We’re going to go home, win, and force Game 7. Then we’ll come back in here and we’ll win the series.”
Fisher made Alfredsson’s promise come true when he redirected Antoine Vermette’s pass across the crease into a wide-open left side, setting off a wild celebration.
Toronto seemed determined to prevent that after Maple Leafs defenseman Bryan McCabe scored during a five-on-three power play 4:14 in.
The Senators were stifled by goalie Ed Belfour until Zdeno Chara scored the tying goal 4:55 into the third period.
Moments after the 6-foot-9 defenseman flattened Joe Nieuwendyk with a big open ice hit in Toronto’s zone, Chara circled behind the Maple Leafs net. He spun around as he approached the left circle and put a wrist shot past Belfour, just inside the left post.
He pumped his fist repeatedly while the sellout crowd of 18,500 erupted in cheers. The goal ended Belfour’s shutout streak at 116 minutes, 55 seconds.
“I thought we had good energy from the start,” Senators coach Jacques Martin said. “But there’s no doubt it gave us a big lift.”
The Senators hadn’t put a goal past Belfour since Chris Phillips scored eight minutes into the third period of Ottawa’s 4-1 win in Game 4. Belfour recorded his third shutout of the series in a 2-0 win Friday.
Belfour also held the Senators scoreless for 157:45 earlier in the series while recording shutouts in Games 2 and 3.
Alfredsson had a goal and an assist in a 4-1 victory in Game 4 after guaranteeing the Senators would not be shut out in three straight games. He also promised earlier this season that the Senators would win the Stanley Cup, though he didn’t specify when.
Maple Leafs center Mats Sundin missed his second straight game because of a left ankle injury sustained in Game 4. His status for Game 7 is still undecided.
“I don’t know at this point,” Quinn said. “I’d still say probably doubtful.”
Toronto missed an opportunity to win it in the last minute of regulation. Senators center Todd White swiped away a loose puck before Alexei Ponikarovsky could reach it in front of an open net.
“We had big chances and missed,” Quinn said. “It would have been nice to have had those.”

Red Sox Fans Pick Name for Documentary
Boston Red Sox fans have given a name to their pain, choosing “Still, We Believe: The Boston Red Sox Movie” as the title of a documentary about their beloved, beleaguered baseball team.
The makers of a film about the dramatic 2003 season had asked fans to select a title online from among four choices. But so many varied responses came in that a second round of voting took place last week on the Red Sox and Boston Globe Web sites.
Nearly 8,000 people voted, and “Still, We Believe” was the favorite. Other choices included “This Is the Year,” “The Ecstasy and the Agony” and “Always the Bridesmaid.”
“The fans have spoken,” Red Sox spokesman Charles Steinberg said. “This truly is a film about fans, for the fans, and now named by the fans.”
The documentary follows last season, from spring training to the American League championship series, in which the Sox were five outs away from beating the rival New York Yankees in Game 7.
Instead of having a shot at winning their first World Series since 1918, they ended up losing 6-5 in 11 innings.
But at least Sox fans still have a sense of humor. Among the title suggestions they posted on the Boston Globe Web site: “Dude, Where’s My Bullpen?” and “I Know What You Did Last Summer, I Wish I Didn’t Know What You Did Last Fall.”
“Still, We Believe,” a THINKFilm release, is scheduled to open May 7 in Boston and expand nationwide throughout the spring.