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TOP STORIES
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HOCKEY
Canadiens introduce new coach St. Louis
HKN-Habs-coach
MONTREAL - Hockey Hall of Famer Martin St. Louis will be officially introduced this morning as the new coach of the Montreal Canadiens. The former Tampa Bay Lightning great was coaching peewee hockey before being tabbed to replace the fired Dominique Ducharme. 800 words. By Tristan D'Amours. PHOTOS. MOVED.
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Canucks name Hall of Famer Granato as assistant GM
HKN-Canucks-Granato
VANCOUVER - The Vancouver Canucks have added to their front office, naming Hall of Famer Cammi Granato as an assistant general manager. Granato, 50, comes to the Canucks from the Seattle Kraken, where she served as a pro scout since 2019. 700 words. By Gemma Karstens-Smith. MOVED. PHOTO.
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Edmonton Oilers fire head coach Dave Tippett
EDMONTON - Ken Holland had a change of heart.
EDMONTON -- The Edmonton Oilers have fired head coach Dave Tippett and associate coach Jim Playfair. Jay Woodcroft, the head coach of the Bakersfield Condors -- Edmonton's AHL affiliate -- will coach the Oilers for the remainder of the season. 750 words. PHOTOS. MOVED.
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SOCCER
Canadian men continue climb up FIFA rankings
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UNDATED — The Canadian men continue their record rise up the FIFA world rankings, climbing seven spots to another all-time high at No. 33. Canada, named the "Most Improved Side'' in 2021 by FIFA, has now risen 39 places since the end of 2020 — sparked by an unbeaten run in CONCACAF World Cup qualifying. 400 words. By Neil Davidson. PHOTO. MOVED.
FOOTBALL
Harris expects to continue paying with chip on his shoulders with Argos
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TORONTO -- For 11 seasons, Andrew Harris has played football with a huge chip on his shoulder and that's not about to change with the Toronto Argonauts. Harris, who turns 35 in April, signed with Toronto on Tuesday, the first day of CFL free agency. The move spelled the end of Harris's successful five-year tenure with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers (2016-19, 2021), one that saw the five-foot-10, 216-pound running back top the league in rushing three times and lead his home-town team to consecutive Grey Cups. 900 words. By Dan Ralph. PHOTO. MOVED.
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Ticats sign veteran defensive back Alden Darby
FBO-CFL-Ticats-Moves
The Hamilton Tiger-Cats signed American defensive back Alden Darby on Thursday. Darby, 29, had 34 tackles (one for a loss) in 11 regular-season games last season with Winnipeg. Darby ended 2021 celebrating the Blue Bombers' overtime 33-25 Grey Cup over Hamilton at Tim Hortons Field. MOVED. 100 words.
BASKETBALL
Reports: Raptors trade Dragic to Spurs for Young
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TORONTO - The Toronto Raptors have reportedly traded guard Goran Dragic to the San Antonio Spurs for forwards Thaddeus Young and Drew Eubanks and draft picks Dragic, 35, came to the Raptors from the Miami Heat as part of the Kyle Lowry trade. He only played five games as he began the season out of Toronto head coach Nick Nurse's rotation, then was granted a leave of absence in late November. The Spurs are expected to buy Dragic out. MOVED. PHOTOS
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Japan rallies to down Canada at FIBA event
BKW-FIBA-WCup-Qualifying
OSAKA - Nirra Fields had a game-high 19 points as Canada lost an 86-79 overtime decision to Japan in its opening game of the FIBA women's World Cup 2022 qualifying tournament Thursday. The result was a disappointing one for Canada, which led by as many as 20 points in the third quarter. Japan rallied to force overtime before outscoring the Canadians 13-6 in the extra session. 120 words. MOVED
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OLYMPICS
Canada hauls in four more medals at Beijing Games
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Team Canada enjoyed its most successful day so far at the Beijing Olympics with a four-medal haul on Thursday. Canada, with 12 total medals, now sits tied with Norway for second on the Olympic medal table. Austria leads with 13. Germany leads with the most gold medals at six. 1,000 words. MOVED. Will be updated
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Julien to rejoin Olympic men's hockey team
OLY-HKO-Canada-Julien
BEIJING -- Claude Julien will coach Canada’s Olympic men’s hockey team after all. Hockey Canada announced the 61-year-old has been cleared to travel and will rejoin the squad in Beijing following Thursday’s tournament opener against Germany. 300 words. By Joshua Clipperton. MOVED. Photo
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COMING LATER
NHL: Washington at Montreal, 7 pm (CP); Pittsburgh at Ottawa, 7 pm (CP); Toronto at Calgary, 9 pm (CP)
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AP TOP STORIES
FBN--NFL AWARDS
INGLEWOOD, Calif — The Associated Press reveals winners of its individual NFL awards, including Most Valuable Player and Coach of the Year, during NFL Honors. By Pro Football Writer Barry Wilner. UPCOMING: 800 words, photos. Show begins 9 p.m.
FBN--HALL OF FAME
INGLEWOOD, Calif. — The Pro Football Hall of Fame class of 2022 is unveiled, with a maximum of eight inductees, including a contributor, a senior, a coach and five modern-era players. By Pro Football Writer Josh Dubow. UPCOMING: 800 words, photos, by 11 p.m.
BBO--LOCKOUT
ORLANDO, Fla. — Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred says spring training remains on hold because of a management lockout and his goal is to reach a labor contract that allows opening day as scheduled on March 31. With the second-longest work stoppage in baseball history stretching into its 71st day, Manfred said teams will make a new offer when negotiations resume Saturday. By Mark Didtler. SENT: 750 words, photos. Will be updated.
BKN--NBA TRADE DEADLINE
The NBA trade deadline has arrived. With the Lakers and Nets struggling, could James Harden and Russell Westbrook be on the move? By Basketball Writer Brian Mahoney. UPCOMING: 700 words, photos by 6 p.m.
COMMENTARY
FBN--ON FOOTBALL-DIVERSITY
Thus far, diversity at most levels of the NFL has not played out well. Yes, the numbers are improving, particularly in executive positions for women and people of color; there are seven Black general managers among the 32 such jobs. They also are increasing for coordinator positions, particularly the opportunities to interview for such jobs. But for head coaches, the most visible face of a franchise, the numbers remain small. By Pro Football Writer Barry Wilner. SENT: 800 words, photos.
NOTABLE
FBN--DOLPHINS-MCDANIEL
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — Mike McDaniel holds his first news conference as coach of the Miami Dolphins, a team reeling from a lawsuit brought by former coach Brian Flores. By Alain Poupart. UPCOMING: 600 words, photos by 4 p.m.
GLF--PHOENIX OPEN
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Jon Rahm begins play in the WM Phoenix Open, the rowdy event only a few miles from the top-ranked Spanish star's home. By John Nicholson. UPCOMING: 700 words, photos by 9 p.m.
BKN--BUCKS-SUNS
PHOENIX — The Phoenix Suns host the Milwaukee Bucks in a rematch of last season's NBA Finals. By David Brandt. UPCOMING: 650 words, photos. Game starts 10 p.m.
BKC--RECURRING TRANSFERS
MINNEAPOLIS — With the NCAA relaxing transfer rules and granting the extra year of eligibility from the pandemic season, school-switching has never been more prevalent in college basketball. There's always a reason behind the relocations, though, and for three-time transfers like Minnesota's Payton Willis and Miami's Charlie Moore, they haven't just been hopping around for more playing time. By Dave Campbell. UPCOMING: 800 words, photos by 6 p.m.
HKN--OILERS-TIPPETT FIRED
EDMONTON, Alberta — The struggling Edmonton Oilers have fired coach Dave Tippett, according to two people with direct knowledge of the decision. The people spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the move had not been announced. One of them said Tippett will be replaced by Jay Woodcroft, the head coach of the Oilers’ AHL affiliate in Bakersfield, California. SENT: 300 words, photos.
OLY--SBD-MEN'S HALFPIPE
ZHANGJIAKOU, China — Shaun White bids adieu to the Olympics on Friday as an underdog. The three-time champion will be going for a medal against Australia's Scotty James and two-time silver medalist Ayumu Hirano and a handful of his Japanese teammates. By Pat Graham. UPCOMING: 500 words, photos by 11 p.m.
OLY--SKI-SHIFFRIN RESETS AGAIN
BEIJING — Mikaela Shiffrin's long history of success is a big reason that her two-immediate-mistakes-in-two-races start to the Beijing Olympics is so difficult for everyone to comprehend, including her. With 1 1/2 weeks left in Alpine skiing, the question becomes what she can do to turn things around. By National Writer Howard Fendrich. SENT: 800 words, photos.
OLY--HKO-US-CANADA SHOWDOWN
BEIJING — The United States and Canada face off Saturday afternoon in Beijing in each team's second game at the Olympics. The two teams are actually playing for the second time this week after scrimmaging to give each other some extra preparation for the tournament. That scrimmage without referees might have gotten nasty had the teams kept playing. They'll get to find out just how nasty now that the game counts. By Hockey Writer Stephen Whyno. SENT: 650 words, photos.
OLY--CUR-GOLD MEDAL REMATCH
BEIJING — The U.S. men’s curling team isn’t dwelling on the last time it played Sweden at the Olympics. It’s thinking of the next time. In a rematch of the Pyeongchang gold medal match, Sweden beat John Shuster’s foursome 7-4 to take an early lead in the round-robin standings and hand the defending champions their first loss of the Beijing Games. By Jimmy Golen. SENT: 600 words, photos.
OLY--BIA-COMPETING IN THE COLD
ZHANGJIAKOU, China — Cross-country skiers and biathletes got a bit of a respite from the bitter conditions at the Beijing Olympics this week as winds calmed and temperatures hovered around 19 degrees. But that’s expected to change this weekend when a cold front moves through. The frosty conditions are hard on athletes trying to stay warm. By Martha Bellisle. SENT: 700 words, photos.
CAR--NASCAR-KING KAULIG
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Matt Kaulig wears a Super Bowl-style ring on his right hand nearly every day to remember his first win as owner of a NASCAR team. He's a former quarterback who played Division I ball at Akron and yet nothing he did on the football field, or even that ring from a win at Daytona are considered Kaulig's greatest achievement in sports. By Auto Racing Writer Jenna Fryer. UPCOMING: 800 words by 2 p.m.
BKL--STORM-STEWART
SEATTLE — Breanna Stewart listened to the idea of playing elsewhere. She ultimately determined to return to the Seattle Storm for one last season alongside Sue Bird. By Tim Booth. UPCOMING: 500 words by 2 p.m.
BKW--T25-NCAA TOP 16 REVEAL
The NCAA will unveil its updated top 16 teams for the NCAA Tournament, with South Carolina, Stanford and Louisville all potentially one seeds. By Basketball Writer Doug Feinberg. UPCOMING: 500 words by 8 p.m.
RAC--ECLIPSE AWARDS
ARCADIA, Calif. — Controversial 2021 Kentucky Derby winner Medina Spirit is among the finalists for 3-year-old male, Knicks Go is nominated for older dirt male, and Brad Cox is a finalist for trainer of the year when the Eclipse Awards are handed out at Santa Anita for the year's best in thoroughbred racing. UPCOMING: 600 words, photos by 9 p.m.
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 10, 2022.
The Canadian Press
