CFL Power Rankings: Stampeders end Riders' reign

1. CALGARY STAMPEDERS[Up from 2]
Overall record: 5-1
Streak: Won 4

Ties here are broken by imagining what the teams would do against each other head-to-head right now, and conveniently the White Stallions took care of that on Friday night. The late-arriving crowd at McMahon Stadium was still juggling its hot dogs and beer by the time it was 16-0 for the home side. Riders had nothing for Jon Cornish and he rumbled for 175 and four big TDs, including one off the direct snap. Offensive line played an excellent contest. Head coach John Hufnagel and his staff game-planned this one nicely.

2. SASKATCHEWAN ROUGHRIDERS [Down from 1]
Overall record:5-1
Streak: Lost 1

The Riders were going to go boom one of these weeks, and it's just one loss. Still, the club looked nervous in the early going and paid for it in errors. Once they found their legs again things began to improve. The previously impenetrable offensive line was beaten up for four sacks, and we'll see how they react to that. Zero run defence. Kory Sheets ran for 133 yards (a stunning 845 overall now), and as long as he's healthy other teams have a huge nut to crack. Now comes the trap game at home to Montreal as the Green play four straight against the second division.

3. TORONTO ARGONAUTS[Unchanged]
Overall record: 4-2
Streak: Won 3

Things turned out Devine in Montreal for the Argos. That would be Noel, who handed them a Christmas present of three big fumbles including one on the opening kickoff (led to a touchdown) and another seven minutes later (led to a touchdown). As a good team will, Toronto took advantage and cruised to a victory. QB Ricky Ray looked good back from his game off due to a knee injury, and the big lead at the half meant they could pull him for a rest after he took a late hit. Nice to see Chad Owens run one back to boost a slow start by the return team this year. John Chiles looks like a find at receiver..

4. B.C. LIONS [Unchanged]
Overall record: 4-2
Streak: Won 1

After hosting the Stampeders this week, the schedule turns much in the favour of the Lions for a while. So, a win over Calgary would be a great setup. Strange when you consider a team of QB Travis Lulay, RB Andrew Harris and all those receivers, but the defence is actually carrying this group to a large extent. They could use more pass rush, but otherwise the D is doing just fine. More takeaways and less giveaways would help everyone. The offence still needs work on finishing its drives. An injury plagued offensive line is plugging along.

5. HAMILTON TIGER-CATS[Up from 6]
Overall record:2-4
Streak: Won 1

As the Cats begin to get healthier, they are starting to play better. Still pretty beaten up, especially on special teams, but the kitties have a pair with the Bombers and this would be a good time to make a real statement under new head coach Kent Austin. QB Henry Burris is doing a nice job throwing the ball but he's also the club's leading rusher and that's awful. No defence has given up as many points, but Hamilton has had a tough schedule so far. They must improve there, however.

6. MONTREAL ALOUETTES[Down from 5]
Overall record: 2-4
Streak: Lost 1

Jim Popp, now boss on and off the field, was hoping to see some positives this week after firing coach Dan Hawkins after just five games. This was after finding out RB Brandon Whitaker may be out up to a month and WR Jamel Richardson is gone for the year. Well, he positively can't have Noel Devine fumble twice in the opening quarter, both leading to scores. He can't have the corners being taken advantage of (same as last year). He can't have the defence tackling with their arms. Aw heck, he can't have this kind of ineptitude anywhere. QB Anthony Calvillo was working from the old playbook more this game, and that will be good in the long term.

7. WINNIPEG BLUE BOMBERS[Unchanged]
Overall record: 1-5
Streak: Lost 4

They hate it out west when the east gets all the headlines, so to one-up Montreal's sacking of the head coach the Bombers dumped GM Joe Mack, and CEO Garth Buchko quit. Or was fired. Or is on paid leave. Depending on what inside leak is passing you little brown envelopes. With ex-Bomber Wade Miller now the interim CEO, it seems the on-field folks will be allowed to make their own decisions on who to play and when. It's now back-to-back with Hamilton and the Blue and Gold cannot lose both or it will be time to think about 2014 because the two after that are with Saskatchewan. Says here they should all just enjoy the fab new digs and work on next year now.

8. EDMONTON ESKIMOS [Unchanged]
Overall record: 1-5
Streak: Lost 4

Hey, they've finished putting all the new seats in at Commonwealth Stadium, and they look great on TV. Now to do something for the folks who pay to sit in them. Linebacker J.C. Sherritt, who owes no one an apology, has been the stand-up guy telling fans the defence will do better. That's what leaders do. Over the bye week, the Eskies have been working on A) stopping the rush, so QB Mike Reilly doesn't get killed, and B) stopping the run, so they have a chance to win. This club spends the next month up in the first division (Argos, Riders, two with Stamps). Tough sledding ahead.

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Sights from the 2013 PGA Championship

Snapshots from the final major of the season

Latest Golf Stories

Sights from the 2013 PGA Championship

It was a momentous day for Jason Dufner, but several big name stars failed to find their grooves on Sunday at the 95th PGA Championship. Here's a collection of snapshots from the event. more »

Athletes react to Jason Dufner's PGA Championship win

PGA golfers and athletes from multiple sports were watching with anticipation during the PGA championship on Sunday. All eyes were on Jason Dufner and Jim Furyk, but it was the man known for "Dufnering" that took home the title. Here's what was being said on Twitter. more »

Jim Furyk leads heading into final round at PGA Championship

Jim Furyk has a one-stroke lead going to the final round of the PGA Championship. Furyk shot a 2-under 68 on Saturday at Oak Hill, capped by an 18-foot birdie on the tough 17th hole and a clutch putt from the fringe to save par at No. 18. more »

PGA Championship: Golfers to watch

Tiger Woods was dominant last weekend at the Bridgestone Invitational, but many golfers appear poised to give the world No. 1 a challenge at this week's PGA Championship, the final major of 2013. more »

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Fans, athletes react to Rafael Nadal's Rogers Cup win over Raonic

Comments on this story are pre-moderated. Before they appear, comments are reviewed by moderators to ensure they meet our submission guidelines. Comments are open and welcome for three days after the story is published. We reserve the right to close comments before then.

Submission Policy

Note: The CBC does not necessarily endorse any of the views posted. By submitting your comments, you acknowledge that CBC has the right to reproduce, broadcast and publicize those comments or any part thereof in any manner whatsoever. Please note that comments are moderated and published according to our submission guidelines.

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Rafael Nadal beats Milos Raonic in Rogers Cup final

Milos Raonic called it a learning experience.

It certainly wasn't the victory party the Uniprix Stadium crowd was hoping for as Rafael Nadal took only one hour eight minutes to down Canada's top tennis player 6-2, 6-2 in the $3.49 million US Rogers Cup final on Sunday in Montreal.

But it had taken 55 years for a Canadian just to get to the final of the country's biggest tournament, so Raonic had much to celebrate despite the defeat.

For one, by reaching the final he will be ranked 10th in the world when the next rankings appear Monday morning, making him the first Canadian to crack the top-10. He will be the youngest player in the top 10 as well.

"The tournament overall was a great thing," the 22-year-old from Thornhill, Ont., said. "There were a lot of situations that I'm very happy with the way I dealt with them, and there were a lot of learning experiences through it all.

"A lot of stepping stones that I need to do in my career happened this week, so that's great. The match, obviously I'm a little disappointed with myself. I would have hoped to deal with that situation a little bit better."

The last Canadian to reach the final of what was then called the Canadian Open, the now 81-year-old Robert Bedard of Sherbrooke, Que., was among the more than 11,000 at centre court to see the power-serving Raonic meticulously taken apart by fourth-seeded Nadal's service returns and brilliant baseline play.

Nadal, one of the world's best who was playing for the first time since his first-round loss at Wimbledon in June, posted his eighth tournament win this year and the 58th of his career.

He sees Raonic as one of the rising talents in the sport.

"With his serve, his chance to be in the top 10 for a long time is very good," the Spaniard said. "Then what you need is to work on the mental part and in the game from the baseline, to try to play the right way on the important points.

"I think he will do it. He's still young. He's having great results. This week is going to be very important for him and for tennis in Canada in general."

Making strides at home

It was an unprecedented week for Canada, which already reached a milestone in April when it defeated Italy to make the Davis Cup semifinals for the first time.

Of the six Canadians in the Rogers Cup main draw, a record five got to the second round.

Then Raonic and Vernon, B.C., native Vasek Pospisil became the first two Canadians to make the semifinals of an ATP Tour tournament since Andrew Sznajder and Martin Wostenholme in 1990 in Rio de Janeiro.

They played each other in a semifinal, a cliffhanger that went to a third-set tiebreaker.

So the one-sided loss in the final stung, but it was still a big week as he made the final for the first time in a Masters series event, one level below the grand slams.

Raonic had worn different coloured Davis Cup-style shirts with a maple leaf over the heart all week, but saved a red-and-white one for the final.

When he walked onto the court, he got a standing ovation.

"That was one of the most special feelings I've had in my career to this date," he said. "I even got a little bit of goosebumps from that. I'm very, very grateful to have that memory and that experience here."

The crowd stayed with him despite the beating.

Nadal had two service breaks in a quick first set, including one game that Raonic led 40-0. The Canadian wasted three break points on Nadal's serve in the fourth game of the second set and saw his chance to make a contest of it slip away.

His best weapon, his serve, was not on form. He got only 50 per cent of his first serves in, and had only four aces.

"I was trying more to serve hard rather than hitting spots," he said. "I wasn't getting the percentages I needed on my first serve.

"Obviously, [Nadal] was playing great. He wasn't making many errors, if any. But at some points, I wasn't making him play enough, or waiting for the right shot. I think I was rushing a lot in the first set and a half.

"But you live and learn. It's an experience I can learn a lot from and I'm sure I will."

Asked to comment on Raonic, Bedard says he has a bright future but needs to work on his game.

"His return of serve is his weakness, for sure," said Bedard, who still plays doubles a few times per week. "He relies too much on his serve.

"If I were his coach, and I'm not close to that, I wouldn't let him serve for a while and just make him play and improve on the other shots that he has. One thing he might not be able to improve as much as he should, as much as Pospisil will, is that his mobility is not that great. But that can improve also."

Nadal, who is 4-0 against Raonic in his career, won $547,300, while Raonic took in $268,350.

Nadal stretched his record for wins in Masters series tournaments to 25 with his fourth this year. He is 48-3 and has reached the final of 10 out of 11 tournaments played in 2013.

Raonic and Pospisil are slated to play this week in Cincinnati.

Soares, Peya win men's doubles

The third-seeded team of Alexander Peya and Bruno Soares downed the British pair of Andy Murray and Colin Fleming 6-4, 7-6 (4) to win the doubles title at the men's Rogers Cup on Sunday.

Peya, of Austria, and Soares, of Brazil, will split $155,490 US for their first win in a Masters series tournament. Fleming and Murray got $76,120.

Murray, the Wimbledon singles champion, and Fleming are childhood friends who played together in an ATP Tour event for the first time.

"It was pretty cool to play with him," Murray said.

"Thanks to Andy for playing with me," said Fleming. "I don't think he had doubles in his plans this week. It was a last-minute thing."

Fleming and Murray had defeated Daniel Nestor of Toronto and Robert Lindstedt of Sweden in the semifinals.

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Canada's Damian Warner takes decathlon bronze at track worlds

Damian Warner was in the mix for a decathlon medal after the first day of competition at the world track and field championships, but he thought he could do better.

It turns out he was right.

Warner put up a personal best score of 8,512 points Sunday to finish third in the decathlon and give Canada its first medal of the championships.

Warner was in fourth place after the first day of competition, and mounted a charge to the podium Sunday with personal bests in the pole vault and javelin.

"I said yesterday I wasn't happy with my first day, said I was going to come out swinging today and that's what I did," Warner said. "I stuck with it, I was motivated to get on the podium and I just let that carry me through the events."

Warner moved into medal position in the javelin throw, the ninth event of the decathlon. His throw of 64.67 metres gave him 808 points and moved him ahead of Germany's Rico Freimuth.

He clinched the bronze with a 10th-place finish in the 1,500 metres, giving him a total of 8,512 points over the two-day, 10-discipline event.

It's the first major medal for the native of London, Ont., who placed fifth in the event at the 2012 London Olympics.

Canada's last world championship decathlon medal was by bronze by Michael Smith in 1995.

World-record holder Ashton Eaton of the United States won gold with 8,809 points, while Germany's Michael Schrader was second with 8,670.

Later in the 1,500 metres, Winnipeg's Nicole Sifuentes and Toronto's Kate Van Buskirk advanced to the semifinals of the women's 1,500 metres. And Vancouver's Inaki Gomez placing eighth in the men's 20-kilometre race walk.

Warner opened the second day of the decathlon with a time of 13.96 seconds in the 110-metre hurdles to score 980 points.

In the discus he recorded a seasonal best of 44.13 metres to score 749 points, then leaped to a personal best of 4.80 metres in the pole vault for 849 points.

He than made the move into medal territory with his javelin throw and held third place through the 1,500.

"This is such a great feeling, all the hard work my coaches and I put into this the last couple of years," he said. "In 2011 I finished 18th, saw the three medallists running around the track with their country's flags draped over their shoulders, I told my coaches that I want that to be me, pretty special feeling to achieve that."

"I hope this motivates the rest of the team," he added.

"This is a fantastic day for Damian and a wonderful day for Canada on the track," the Canadian Olympic Committee said in a statement. "After finishing just off the podium at the London 2012 Games, Damian has continued to show his tremendous Canadian grit, and his commitment to his training has been rewarded with a bronze medal."

Canadian results

In the women's 1,500 metres, Sifuentes finished sixth in her preliminary heat in four minutes, 8.54 seconds to qualify automatically for the semifinals. Van Buskirk finished seventh in her heat in 4:08.65, and her time was good enough to go through as one of the six fastest outside the automatic qualifiers.

"All I wanted was to advance, that was my plan," Sifuentes said. "I was a bit out there the whole race, but at least I didn't get boxed in. I knew even if I wasn't top six [to auto-qualify] I would get in on time."

Toronto's Sheila Reid was seventh in her heat and failed to move on.

Gomez finished the race walk with a seasonal-best time of 1:22:21.

"It was tough, it was hot out there," Gomez said. "The pace picked up around 12 kilometres. I tried to stay with the Spanish racer who ended up winning bronze. At 16 kilometres I noticed I had two cards on the board, so I had to be careful from that point. Had to make sure my technique was flawless. I wanted to finish top eight, I accomplished that."

Benjamin Thorne of Kitimat, B.C., was 20th.

Toronto sprinters Gavin Smellie and Aaron Brown ran in the semifinals of the men's 100 metres but failed to qualify.

Brown finished fifth in the semi won by eventual champion Usain Bolt.

"I got out pretty well, obviously Usain's acceleration is crazy," Brown said. "I was running next to him out there. No complaints here, happy with how I performed."

With Files from CBCSports.ca

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Canada's Damian Warner sits in 4th in decathlon: track and field worlds

Olympic champion Ashton Eaton closed in on the decathlon gold medal at the world championships on Sunday, extending his lead after eight events.

Eaton cleared a season-best 5.20 metres to place third in the pole vault. With the javelin and 1,500 metres remaining, the American has 7,252 points, 181 points ahead of Michael Schrader of Germany. Another German, Rico Freimuth, was 245 points behind in third.

Eaton started the day by running the fastest 110-meter hurdles in 13.72 seconds despite clipping the second hurdle. He was 12th in the discus, won by Freimuth's toss of 48.74 metres.

Damian Warner of Canada remained fourth after the pole vault. Gunnar Nixon of the United States, second after the first day, fell to eighth.

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Milos Raonic to face Rafael Nadal in Rogers Cup final

Milos Raonic came out on top of the all-Canadian semifinal at the men's Rogers Cup, but now comes the real test — Rafael Nadal.

The power-hitting right-hander's cliffhanger 6-4, 1-6, 7-6 (4) victory over Vasek Pospisil on Saturday made him the first Canadian to reach the final of his country's biggest tournament since Robert Bedard won it for the third time in 1958.

Sunday will be Raonic's first final in the Master series, a level of ATP tournament just below the grand slams (CBC, CBCSports.ca, 3 p.m. ET).

The other semifinal was a gem of speed and skill, as Nadal ended Novak Djokovic's two-year reign as Rogers Cup champion with 6-4, 3-6, 7-6 (2) victory. Nadal will be seeking a third title after winning in 2005 and 2008.

It had drama, as Djokovic wasn't pleased at all to be accidentally hit in the face by a Nadal cross-court shot in the third set, but there was no harm done.

'Last time he gave me a whoopin' in Barcelona.'— Milos Raonic on his Rogers Cup final opponent Rafael Nadal

The two traded shots evenly until the third-set tiebreaker, when the crowd favourite Nadal took a 6-0 lead and later saw it end when Djokovic hit a groundstroke a tad long.

"Milos is a fantastic player," Nadal said in a courtside interview. "I know him well. He has played a fantastic tournament here.

"I'm very happy for Canada to have two players in the semifinals."

Raonic is 0-3 against Nadal in his career and has never won a set from the Spaniard.

"Last time he gave me a whoopin' in Barcelona," said Raonic. "It was a very different surface on clay. And at home for him, it was tough.

"When I played him in 2010, I was like 200th in the world. I held my own to a certain extent, but he was a much, much better player than I was. In 2011, it was my first tournament back from hip surgery. I think it's a different situation this time around.

"I have to try to play as much as I can on my terms. I'm going to have to serve well. That's always of highest importance. And I've got to try of create opportunities for myself through aggressive tennis, rather than waiting for him to make errors."

Raonic's win will put him into the top-10 in world rankings — a prestigious spot that only the very good ones ever achieve.

"They're all very special, but I think the top-10 one stands out more just because it's a goal that I set this year," the 22-year-old from Thornhill, Ont., said. "It looked a little bit difficult after how I played recently, but to do it here in Montreal is a relief and it's a happy feeling."

Meanwhile, it was a tough night for veteran Daniel Nestor of Toronto. He and Swedish partner Robert Lindstedt were thumped 6-3, 6-0 in a semifinal against Wimbledon champion Andy Murray and Colin Fleming.

Djokovic and Nadal met for the 36th time, tying the record for the Open Era set by John McEnroe and Ivan Lendl. Nadal leads the head-to-head series (21-15), and cut Djokovic's lead on hardcourts at to 11-6.

Nadal has won seven tournaments this year, but only one so far on a hardcourt. Still, the king of clay courts is 8-0 on the hard surface.

Pospisil, in his best ATP Tour showing, earned $128,960 and 360 rankings points for reaching the semis, which will push his ranking from its current 71st to about No. 40. That completes the Vernon, B.C., native's goal for this year of reaching the top-50.

On the court, both played nervously at first and it turned into a serving battle, with few interesting rallies until the final point of the third-set tiebreaker to decide the match.

Raonic stretched to get to a Pospisil shot at the net, forcing his opponent to make a lunging volley that went into the net.

"I was winning most of the points from the baseline once the rallies were started," said Pospisil. "The tiebreak got away from me a little bit there at the end, a couple of loose points.

"But I went for it. No regrets. I didn't want to lose the match playing defensively. I tried to go for it even with the nerves that there were. This time it didn't work out, but that's the right way for me to go."

Longtime opponents

The two Canadians have been playing each other since they were in under-14 tournaments, but while Raonic has used his big serve to shoot up the rankings in recent years, Pospisil has taken a slower route.

He has caught fire of late, however, winning a Challenger series tournament last week in Vancouver, then posting three wins at the Rogers Cup, including his first win over a top-20 player (John Isner) and his first over a top-10 (Tomas Berdych).

It ended against Raonic, who has been struggling since he won in San Jose in the spring and is now working with a new coach.

Now the Davis Cup teammates may become rivals on the ATP Tour.

"For my sake, I hope we'll see each other a lot more," said Pospisil. "That will mean I'll keep up the good form.

"I don't see why not because I've been doing really well the last couple months."

The centre court crowd had been on its feet for Canadian players all week, but with two playing each other, the partisan clapping and chanting between points was gone.

And there was little to get excited about in the first set, as Raonic had the only service break for a 3-2 lead just after Pospisil let two break points get away.

'Milos is a fantastic player. I know him well. He has played a fantastic tournament here. I'm very happy for Canada to have two players in the semifinals.'— Rafael Nadal

"Early on we were both pretty nervous," said Pospisil. "It wasn't the moment.

"It was the fact I was playing Milos. It's probably a little bit the same for him. We played each other so many times. We grew up together. I don't think either one wanted to lose."

It all went Pospisil's way in the second set as he broke twice for 2-0 and 5-1 leads against a suddenly listless Raonic. Pospisil punctuated set point with a leaping fist pump.

Raonic took a restroom break after the set and came back with a strong service game and the two held service through to the tiebreaker.

"I had so much bottled up inside of me that it was stopping me from playing my best tennis," said Raonic. "I sort of yelled at myself, got a lot of emotions out, told myself if this is going to happen, it's going to be me going out there and pushing as much as I can.

"The first game, I started serving 20 km/h harder. I told myself that I've got to leave it all out there."

They were the first Canadians to reach the semifinals of the tournament — once called the Canadian Open — since Mike Belkin lost to American Cliff Richey.

The last time two Canadians were in the semifinals of an ATP Tour event was in 1990 at Rio de Janeiro, where Andrew Sznajder lost in the final and Martin Wostenholme was beaten in the semis.

The Djokovic-Nadal match was another level of tennis entirely, as the current and former world No. 1's exchanged fast-paced, often spectacular rallies.

Pospisil earned entry into next week's tournament in Cincinnati, where he will face Frenchman Gilles Simon in the first round. Raonic is seeded 12th and will play American Jack Sock.

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Summer of Stanley: Chicago Blackhawks and the Cup

Comments on this story are pre-moderated. Before they appear, comments are reviewed by moderators to ensure they meet our submission guidelines. Comments are open and welcome for three days after the story is published. We reserve the right to close comments before then.

Submission Policy

Note: The CBC does not necessarily endorse any of the views posted. By submitting your comments, you acknowledge that CBC has the right to reproduce, broadcast and publicize those comments or any part thereof in any manner whatsoever. Please note that comments are moderated and published according to our submission guidelines.

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Track and field worlds: Athletes to watch

The 14th world track and field championships run Saturday through Aug. 18 at Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow.

The event attracts 2,000 athletes from 206 countries, with Canada boasting 24 Olympians on its 46-person roster, including decathlete Damian Warner and heptathlete Jessica Zelinka, both of London, Ont., and high jumper Michael Mason of Nanoose Bay, B.C.

A rash of injuries and a bevy of high-profile positive drug tests means notable athletes like sprinters Tyson Gay of the United States and Jamaican Asafa Powell will be absent.

Olympic heptathlon champion Jessica Ennis-Hill, sprinter Yohan Blake and 800-metre runner David Rudisha are among the walking wounded.

In the gallery above, we feature six men and six women to keep an eye on during the nine-day event.

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NHL moves & signings tracker

Keep up to date with the changing face of your favourite NHL team, as well as their rivals, with this list of important new signings, contract extensions, trades and buyouts since the last day of the regular season on April 28.

Keep up to date with the changing face of your favourite NHL team, as well as their rivals, with this list of important new signings, contract extensions, trades and buyouts since the last day of the regular season on April 28.

*All monetary terms indicated are totals for full length of contract and are in U.S. currency.

New Signings

• F Zack Stortini (1 year)
• D Nolan Yonkman (1 year)
• D Alex Grant (1 year)
  
• F Dustin Penner (1 year)

Contract extensions

• F Matt Beleskey (2 years)
  
• D Ben Lovejoy (3 years, $3.3M)
• F Saku Koivu (1 year)
• F Kyle Palmieri (3 years)

Trades

• Sent F Bobby Ryan to Ottawa for 2014 1st-round pick, F Jakob Silfverberg, F Stefan Noesen

Compliance buyouts

N/A

New Signings

• F Jarome Iginla (1 year, $6M)
• G Chad Johnson (1 year, $600K)

Contract extensions

• G Tuukka Rask (8 years, $56M)
• F Patrice Bergeron (8 years, $52M)
  

Trades

• Sent F Tyler Seguin, F Rich Peverley, D Ryan Button to Dallas for F Loui Eriksson, F Reilly Smith, D Joe Morrow, F Matt Fraser

Compliance buyouts

N/A

New Signings

N/A

Contract extensions

• D Drew Bagnall (1 year)
  
• F John Scott (1 year, $750K)
• G Jhonas Enroth (2 years, $2.5M)
• D Adam Sulzer (1 year)
• D Mike Weber (3 years, $5M)

Trades

• Sent D Andrei Sekera to Carolina for D Jamie McBain
• Sent F Riley Boychuk to New Jersey for D Henrik Tallinder
  

Compliance buyouts

N/A

New Signings

• G Karri Ramo (2 years, $5.5M)
  
• F Corban Knight
• F Greg Nemisz
  

Contract extensions

• F Brian McGrattan (2 years, $1.5M)
• C Mikael Backlund (2 years, $3M)
• D Chris Butler (1 year)
• D T.J. Brodie (2 years, $2.125M)
  

Trades

• Sent 2015 4th-round pick to San Jose for F T.J. Galiardi
• Sent 2014 5th-round pick to St. Louis for D Kris Russell
  

Compliance buyouts

N/A

New Signings

• D Mike Komisarek (1 year, $700K)
• G Anton Khudobin (1 year, $800K)
  
• F Nathan Gerbe (1 year)

Contract extensions

• F Brett Sutter (1 year, $600K)
• F Jared Staal (1 year, 2-way deal)

Trades

• Sent D Jamie McBain to Buffalo for D Andrei Sekera

Compliance buyouts

N/A

New Signings

• F Drew LeBlanc (2 years)
  
• G Nikolai Khabibulin (1 year)
• D Mike Kostka (1 year)
• D Theo Peckham (1 year)
• F Brad Winchester (1 year)
  

Contract extensions

• F Bryan Bickell (4 years, $16M)
• D Nick Leddy (2 years)
• D Michal Rozsival (2 years)
• F Michal Handzus (1 year)
  
• F Marcus Kruger (2 years, $2.65M)

Trades

• Sent F Dave Bolland to Toronto for 2013 2nd-round pick, 2013 6th-round pick, 2014 4th-round pick
• Sent F Michael Frolik to Winnipeg for 2013 3rd-round pick, 2013 5th-round pick
• Sent F Daniel Carcillo to Los Angeles for 2015 conditional pick

Compliance buyouts

N/A

New Signings

• D Andre Benoit (1 year, $900K)

Contract extensions

• F Patrick Bordeleau (3 years, $3M)
• F Matt Duchene (5 years, $30M))
  

Trades

N/A

Compliance buyouts

New Signings

• F Nathan Horton (7 years, $37.1M)
• F Jack Skille (1 year)
• D Frederic St. Denis (1 year)
  

Contract extensions

• G Sergei Bobrovsky (2 years, $11.25M)
• F Cam Atkinson (2 years, $2.3M)
• G Curtis McElhinney (1 year, $600K)
• F Artem Anisimov (3 years, $9.85M)

Trades

N/A

Compliance buyouts

N/A

New Signings

• G Dan Ellis (2 years, $1.8M)
  

Contract extensions

• G Cristopher Nilstrorp (1 year, $725K)
• D Sergei Gonchar (3 years, $16.5M)
• F Jordie Benn (3 years)

Trades

• Sent F Loui Eriksson, F Reilly Smith, D Joe Morrow, F Matt Fraser to Boston for F Tyler Seguin, F Rich Peverley, D Ryan Button
• Sent D Philip Larsen, 2016 7th-round pick to Edmonton for F Shawn Horcoff
  

Compliance buyouts

N/A

New Signings

• F Daniel Alfredsson (1 year, $5.5M)
• F Stephen Weiss (5 years, $24.5M)
  

Contract extensions

• D Jakub Kindl (4 years, $9.6M)
• F Pavel Datsyuk (3 years, $22.5M)
• F Drew Miller (3 years, $4.05M)
• D Brendan Smith (2 years)
• F Joakim Andersson (2 years)

Trades

N/A

Compliance buyouts

N/A

Other

• Waived D Carlo Colaiacovo

New Signings

• G Richard Bachman (1 year)
  
• D Andrew Ference (4 year, $13M)
• F Boyd Gordon (3 years, $9M)
• F Ryan Jones (1 year)
  
• G Jason LaBarbera (1 year, $1M)
• D Denis Grebeshkov (1 year)

Contract extensions

• F Mark Arcobello (1 year, $600K)
• F Sam Gagner (3 years, $14.4M)

Trades

• Sent F Shawn Horcoff to Dallas for D Philip Larsen, 2016 7th-round pick
  
• Sent F Magnus Paajarvi, 2014 2nd-round pick to St. Louis for F David Perron

Compliance buyouts

New Signings

• F Joey Crabb (2 years, $1.2M)

Contract extensions

• F Bobby Butler (2 years, $1.2M)
• F Shawn Matthias (2 years, $3.5M)
  

Trades

• Sent F George Parros to Montreal for F Philippe Lefebvre, 2014 7th-round pick

Compliance buyouts

N/A

Other

• Bought out D Filip Kuba (standard buyout)

New Signings

Contract extensions

• D Robyn Regehr (2 years, $6M)
• D Slava Voynov (6 years, $25M)
• D Jake Muzzin (2 years)
  
• D Alec Martinez (2 years)
• F Dustin Brown (8 years, $47M)
• F Jordan Nolan (2 years, $1.4M)
  
• F Trevor Lewis (1 year)
• F Kyle Clifford (2 years)

Trades

• Sent 2015 conditional pick to Chicago for F Daniel Carcillo 

Compliance buyouts

N/A

New Signings

• D Keith Ballard (2 years, $3M)
• F Matt Cooke (3 years)

Contract extensions

• G Niklas Backstrom (3 years, $10.25M)
• D Marco Scandella (2 years, $2.05M)
• D Jared Spurgeon (3 years, $8M)
  

Trades

• Sent D Justin Falk to NY Rangers for F Benn Ferriero, 2014 2nd-round pick
• Sent F Cal Clutterbuck to NY Islanders for F Nino Niederreiter
• Sent F Devin Setoguchi to Winnipeg for 2014 2nd-round pick

Compliance buyouts

N/A

New Signings

• F Danny Briere (2 years, $8M)
• C Martin St-Pierre (1 year, $550,000)

Contract extensions

• D Davis Drewiske (2 years, $1.275M)
• F Gabriel Dumont (2 years)
• F Ryan White (1 year)
  

Trades

• Sent F Danny Kristo to NY Rangers for F Christian Thomas
• Send F Philippe Lefebvre, 2014 7th-round pick to Florida for F George Parros
  

Compliance buyouts

N/A

New Signings

• F Matt Cullen (2 years, $7M)
• F Matt Hendricks (4 years, $7.4M)
• D Seth Jones (3 years)
  
• F Eric Nystrom (4 years, $10 M)
• F Viktor Stalberg (4 years, $12M)

Contract extensions

• F Rich Clune (2 years, $1.7M)
• F Patric Hornqvist (5 years, $21.25M)
• D Roman Josi (7 years, $28M)
• F Rich Clune (2 years, $1.7M)
• F Nick Spaling (1 year)

Trades

N/A

Compliance buyouts

N/A

Other

• Waived F Sergei Kostitsyn
• Waived D Hal Gill
  

New Signings

• F Ryan Clowe (5 years, $24.25M)
• F Rostislav Olesz (1 year, $1M)
  
• F Michael Ryder (2 years, $7M)
• F Jaromir Jagr (1 year, $2M)

Contract extensions

• D Peter Harrold (2 years, $1.6M)
• F Dainius Zubrus (3 years, $9.3M)
• F Andrei Loktionov (1 year, $725K)
• F Patrik Elias (3 years, $16.5M)
  
• D Marek Zidlicky (1 year, $3M)

Trades

• Sent 2013 1st-round pick to Vancouver for G Cory Schneider
• Sent D Henrik Tallinder to Buffalo for F Riley Boychuk
  

Compliance buyouts

N/A

Other

• Waived G Johan Hedberg
• F Ilya Kovalchuk announced retirement
  

New Signings

• F Peter Regin (1 year, $750K)
• F Pierre-Marc Bouchard (1 year, $2M)
  
• F Cal Clutterbuck (4 years)

Contract extensions

• F Eric Boulton (1 year, $550K)
• G Evgeni Nabokov (1 year, $3.25M)
• D Travis Hamonic (7 years, $27M)
  
• F Josh Bailey (5 years, $16.5M)
• D Thomas Hickey (2 years)
  

Trades

• Sent F Nino Niederreiter to Minnesota for F Cal Clutterbuck

Compliance buyouts

N/A

New Signings

• F Dominic Moore (1 year, $1M)
• F Benoit Pouliot (N/A)

Contract extensions

• D Ryan McDonagh (6 years, $28.6M)
• D Justin Falk (1 year, $975K)
• F Carl Hagelin (2 years, $4.5M)
• F Mats Zuccarello (1 year, $1.25M)

Trades

• Sent F Benn Ferreiro, 2014 2nd-round pick to Minnesota for D Justin Falk
• Sent F Kris Newbury to Philadelphia for D Danny Syvret
• Sent F Christian Thomas to Montreal for F Danny Kristo

Compliance buyouts

N/A

New Signings

• D Joe Corvo (1 year, $900K)
• F Clarke MacArthur (2 years, $6.5M)

Contract extensions

• F David Dziurzinsky (1 year)
• F Erik Condra (2 years, $2.5M)
  
• D Patrick Wiercioch (3 years, $6M)

Trades

• Sent 2014 1st-round pick, F Jakob Silfverberg, F Stefan Noesen to Anaheim for Bobby Ryan

Compliance buyouts

N/A

New Signings

• F Vincent Lecavalier (5 years, $22.5M)
• G Ray Emery (1 year, $1.65M)
• G Yann Danis (1 year)
  
• D Erik Gustafsson (1 year, $1M)

Contract extensions

• D Mark Streit (4 years, $21M)
• F Adam Hall (1 year)
• F Claude Giroux (8 years, $64M)
• F Sean Couturier (2 years, $3.5M)

Trades

• Sent D Danny Syrvret to NY Rangers for F Kris Newbury

Compliance buyouts

• F Danny Briere
• G Ilya Bryzgalov

New Signings

• F Mike Ribeiro (4 years, $22M)
• G Thomas Greiss (1 year, $750K)
• C Tim Kennedy (N/A)
• F Brandon Yip (1 year, two-way)
  

Contract extensions

• G Mike Smith (6 years, $34M)
• D Rob Klinkhammer (2 years, $625K)
• F Lauri Korpikoski (4 years, $10M)  
• F Kyle Chipchura (1 year, $875K)
  
• D Michael Stone (3 years)
• D Chris Summers (1 year)

Trades

N/A

Compliance buyouts

N/A

New Signings

• D Rob Scuderi (4 years, $13.5M)
• F Matt D'Agostini (1 year, $550K)

Contract extensions

• F Chris Kunitz (3 years, $11.55M)
• F Evgeni Malkin (8 years, $76M)
• D Kris Letang (8 years, $58M)
• F Pascal Dupuis (4 years, $15M)

Trades

N/A

Compliance buyouts

New Signings

N/A

Contract extensions

• F Raffi Torres (3 years, $6M)
• F Logan Couture (5 years, $30M)
• D Jason Demers (1 year, $1.5M)
• D Scott Hannan (1 year, $1M)
• F Matt Pelech (1 year)
  
• G Alex Stalock (1 year)
  
• F Joe Pavelski (5 years)

Trades

• Sent 2013 2nd-round pick to Pittsburgh for F Tyler Kennedy
• Sent F T.J. Galiardi to Calgary or 2015 4th-round pick
  

Compliance buyouts
N/A

New Signings

• F Keith Aucoin (1 year, $625K)
  
• F Max Lapierre (2 years)
• F Derek Roy (1 year, $4M)
• F Chris Stewart (2 years, $8.3M)
  

Contract extensions

• D Kevin Shattenkirk (4 years, $17M)
• F Patrick Berglund (1 year, $3.25M)
• D Ian Cole (2 years, $1.65M)
• F Adam Cracknell (1 year, $600K)
• D Jordan Leopold (2 years)
• G Jake Allen (2 years, $1.6M)
• D Jay Bouwmeester (5 years)
  

Trades

• Sent D Kris Russell to Calgary for 2014 5th-round pick
• Sent F David Perron to Edmonton for F Magnus Paajarvi, 2014 2nd-round pick
  

Compliance buyouts

N/A

New Signings

• F Valtteri Filppula (5 years, $25M)

Contract extensions

• D Radko Gudas (3 years, $991K)
• D Keith Aulie (1 year, $975K)

Trades

N/A

Compliance buyouts

New Signings

• F David Clarkson (7 years, $36.75M)
• F Troy Bodie (1 year)
• D Paul Ranger (1 year)

Contract extensions

• G Drew MacIntyre (1 year, $600K)
• F Colton Orr (2 years, $1.85M)
• F Frazer McLaren (2 years, $1.4M)
• F Tyler Bozak (5 years, $21M)
• F Joe Colborne (1 year, $600K)
• D Carl Gunnarsson (3 years)
• D Mark Fraser (1 year)

Trades

• Sent 2013 2nd-round pick, 2013 6th-round pick, 2014 4th-round pick to Chicago for F Dave Bolland
• Sent G Ben Scrivens, F Matt Frattin to LA Kings for G Jonathan Bernier (2 years)
  

Compliance buyouts

• D Mike Komisarek
• F Mikhail Grabovski
  

Other

New Signings

• F Brad Richardson (2 years, $2.3M)
• F Pascal Pelletier (N/A)
  
• C Mike Santorelli (N/A)
• F Yannick Weber (1 year, $650K)
• F Ronalds Kenins (N/A)

Contract extensions

• F Tom Sestito (2 years, $1.5M)
• D Patrick Mullen (1 year, $600K)

Trades

• Sent G Cory Schneider to New Jersey for 2013 1st-round pick (F Bo Horvat)

Other
N/A

New Signings

N/A

Contract extensions

• Karl Alzner (4 years, $11.2M)

Trades

N/A

Compliance buyouts

N/A

Other

New Signings

• D Adam Pardy (N/A)
• F Matt Halischuk
  

Contract extensions

• D Grant Clitsome (3 years)
• G Al Montoya (1 year, $601K)
• F Eric Tangradi (2 years, $1.35M)
• D Paul Postma (2 years, $1.425M)
  
• F Bryan Little (5 years, $23.5M)
• F Blake Wheeler (6 years, $33.6M)
  
• D Zach Bogosian (7 years, $36M)

Trades

• Sent 2013 3rd-round pick, 2013 5th-round pick to Chicago for F Michael Frolik
• Sent 2014 2nd-round pick to Minnesota for F Devin Setoguchi

Compliance buyouts

N/A

Other

• F Alexander Burmistrov left for KHL

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Edna Kiplagat golden in women's marathon: track worlds

Defending champion Edna Kiplagat of Kenya won her second world championship title in the women's marathon Saturday in Moscow, making a late surge to pull past Valeria Straneo of Italy.

Kiplagat won in 2 hours, 25 minutes, 44 seconds.

Straneo had led from the early minutes of the race on a flat course along the Moscow River. But Kiplagat made her move at the 40th-kilometre mark and finished nearly 15 seconds ahead of Straneo.

Kayoko Fukushi of Japan won bronze.

Canada's Lanni Marchant was 44th, with a time of 3:01:54, a season best.

Freak accident fells Semenova

Discus thrower Natalia Semenova of Ukraine was injured in qualifying Saturday in a freak accident.

Semenova was sitting on the bench in the infield when Zaneta Glanc of Poland spread her arms and imitated a throwing motion while holding the disc in her hand and hit Semenova on the nose.

Semenova's coach said the athlete's nose may have been broken but there was no immediate word from the Ukrainian team on the severity of the injury.

She made one throw of 55.79 metres but failed to reach Sunday's final.

With files from CBCSports.ca

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Track and field worlds: Athletes to watch

The 14th world track and field championships run Saturday through Aug. 18 at Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow.

The event attracts 2,000 athletes from 206 countries, with Canada boasting 24 Olympians on its 46-person roster, including decathlete Damian Warner and heptathlete Jessica Zelinka, both of London, Ont., and high jumper Michael Mason of Nanoose Bay, B.C.

A rash of injuries and a bevy of high-profile positive drug tests means notable athletes like sprinters Tyson Gay of the United States and Jamaican Asafa Powell will be absent.

Olympic heptathlon champion Jessica Ennis-Hill, sprinter Yohan Blake and 800-metre runner David Rudisha are among the walking wounded.

In the gallery above, we feature six men and six women to keep an eye on during the nine-day event.

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Stampeders hand Roughriders 1st loss of season

The Calgary Stampeders finished the job this time.

Up a touchdown at halftime July 5 in Regina, they didn't score again while the Saskatchewan Roughriders churned out 22 points en route to victory.

When the Roughriders threatened to come from behind again Friday, the Stampeders preserved a 42-27 win on a tide-turning defensive play and offence from their big guns in the fourth quarter.

Saskatchewan lost for the first time this season, putting both teams at 5-1 atop both the CFL standings and the West Division standings.

"The one biggest thing we emphasized was finish because we didn't do that last time and I think we did it tonight," Stampeders quarterback Kevin Glenn said.

"The biggest thing was staying together as a team and having each other's back because we knew it was going to be a hard-fought game. They were undefeated for a reason."

Calgary running back Jon Cornish had a torrid night with four touchdowns, 175 rushing yards and another 20 receiving yards.

Saskatchewan counterpart Kory Sheets was held to just eight yards in the first half before the CFL's leading rusher strung together his trademark rumbles in the second. Sheets finished with 133 yards on 14 carries.

Calgary led 26-7 at halftime, but the Roughriders scored 13 unanswered points in the third quarter.

Demonte Bolden halted Saskatchewan's momentum by sacking quarterback Darian Durant in the end zone for a point in the fourth. Glenn then threw a 25-yard touchdown pass to Nik Lewis and Cornish scored his fourth major of the night on a one-yard dive.

"Saskatchewan is a great team and they proved it in the second half," Cornish said. "They have probably the most explosive offence I've seen in my seven years in the CFL.

"They can put up 100 yards in 10 seconds so it's really good we got this win against them, but it's going to be tough sledding against them the next game."

Season series all tied up

Calgary and Saskatchewan are 1-1 against each other and will decide the season series Oct. 26 in Calgary.

Calgary kicker Rene Paredes extended his CFL record for consecutive field goals to 36 with kicks from 30 and 27 yards.

Glenn was Calgary's starter instead of an injured Drew Tate, with backup Bo Levi Mitchell spelling Glenn on short-yardage situations. Glenn completed 21-of-28 pass attempts for 218 yards and one touchdown.

Durant returned to Saskatchewan's lineup after sitting out a game with an ankle injury. The veteran threw a pair of touchdown passes to Chris Getzlaf and another to Jock Sanders in front of an announced sellout of 35,637 wearing both Roughrider green and Stampeder red.

"We came into this game thinking we were on equal footing with Saskatchewan, but we had the advantage of being at home," Cornish said. 'People always say Saskatchewan (fans) always fills up the stands, but I saw a lot of Calgarian fans here today."

Durant was 20-for-32 in passing for 279 yards. Roughrider kicker Chris Milo kicked field goals from 28 and 13 yards.

"We knew coming out of the locker room at halftime we would have to make some hay," Calgary coach John Hufnagel said. "We didn't. They did, but we were able to seize the momentum back and the defence came up with a big safety.

"We took the ensuing kickoff and marched it down for a touchdown, so that was a big nine points in that football game."

Stamps stand tall

Calgary dominated the first half by holding the CFL's leading offence to 135 yards, while Cornish ran for 115 and three touchdowns.

"Whenever you get behind on a good team, it's always hard to make up ground," Durant said. "They had a great game plan. Their rushers and tacklers were really good tonight and we weren't able to make up the ground.

Cornish made the most of a gap created by his offensive linemen and raced 32 yards to score at 12:54 of the second quarter. Paredes gave the hosts a 19-point cushion before halftime with his second field goal of the game.

The Stamps led 13-0 after the first quarter on two Cornish touchdowns. Paredes padded the lead to 16-0 before the Roughriders countered in the second quarter. Durant marched the visitors 75 yards and finished the drive with a 20-yard pass to Getzlaf at 5:04.

Cornish's second TD of the opening quarter was a two-yard dash off a Mitchell handoff at 8:55.

The Stampeders turned Saskatchewan's first offensive fumble of the season into a major. On Saskatchewan's opening drive, the football squirted out of bounds when Brandon Smith brought Sheets down near the sideline.

Hufnagel's challenge overturned the initial ruling that Sheets was the last to touch the ball. Cornish's 14-yard run on the next play and a convert from Paredes put Calgary up 7-0 at 2:42.

The Stampeders are on the road against the B.C. Lions (4-2) next week, while the Roughriders host the struggling Montreal Alouettes (2-4).

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The Wayne Gretzky Trade: 25 years later

To mark the 25th anniversary of Wayne Gretzky's move from the Edmonton Oilers to the Los Angeles Kings, the NHL superstar's closest confidantes reveal surprising details of "The Trade" on The National.

Canadian entertainment icon Alan Thicke, former Kings owner Bruce McNall, and Hockey Night in Canada colour commentator Craig Simpson share their behind-the-scenes accounts of the events leading up to The Great One's shocking announcement on Aug. 9, 1988.

Watch the feature above in its entirety.

Looking for more on the Gretzky trade anniversary?

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CBC Archives: Don Cherry's take on the Gretzky deal

Dip into the CBC Radio archives to hear how jilted Edmonton fans reacted to Wayne Gretzky's trade to Los Angeles, and listen to Canadian hockey icon Don Cherry's real-time take on the famous deal.

The blockbuster trade that sent Edmonton Oilers megastar Wayne Gretzky to the Los Angeles Kings stunned the sports worlds when it was announced 25 years ago, on Aug. 9, 1988.

Nowhere did the news hit harder than in Canada, and especially Edmonton, where Gretzky was (and still is) considered hockey royalty after leading the Oilers to four Stanley Cup titles and breaking numerous NHL scoring records along the way.

In this clip from the CBC Radio archives, hear how jilted Edmonton fans reacted to the Gretzky trade, and listen to Canadian hockey icon Don Cherry's real-time take on the deal.

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9 things No. 99 has done since The Trade

The Aug. 9, 1988 megatrade that sent Wayne Gretzky from the Edmonton Oilers to the Los Angeles Kings is often cited as the beginning of pro hockey's acceptance in the southern United States.

It was also the end of an era for Edmonton, which would win its fifth Stanley Cup in 1990 without Gretzky but soon saw its dynasty fade.

Gretzky never won a Cup after leaving the Oilers, but he did embark on a hockey Odyssey that would see him (in no particular order) suit up for three more NHL teams, play for and manage the Canadian Olympic team, coach in the NHL, buy into teams in both the NHL and CFL, and join the Hockey Hall of Fame.

Check out nine things No. 99 has done since The Trade in this interactive graphic from the Canadian Press:

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The Gretzky Trade: By the numbers

With the benefit of a quarter century of hindsight, we can look back at "The Trade" of Aug. 9, 1988 and evaluate the deal that sent Wayne Gretzky from the Edmonton Oilers to the Los Angeles Kings.

With the benefit of a quarter century of hindsight, we can look back at "The Trade" of Aug. 9, 1988 and statistically evaluate the deal that sent Wayne Gretzky from the Edmonton Oilers to the Los Angeles Kings.

That means using cold, hard numbers far removed from the white-hot passion felt at the time by those directly involved, as well as Oilers fans who were burning Oilers owner Peter Pocklington in effigy.

First, a look at the players involved, with their major stats on the day of the trade:

To Los Angeles

F Wayne Gretzky -- 696 games, 583 goals, 1086 assists, 1669 points.

F Marty McSorley -- 247 games, 24 goals, 40 assists, 64 points.

F Mike Krushelnyski -- 442 games 146 goals, 196 assists, 342 points.

To Edmonton

F Jimmy Carson -- 160 games, 104 goals, 103 assists, 207 points.

F Martin Gelinas -- Had yet to play in the NHL.

3 1st- round draft picks -- 1989 (sent to New Jersey, which drafted Jason Miller), 1991 (Martin Rucinsky) and 1993 (Nick Stajduhar).

$15 million US in cash

The aftermath

Now that we know what each of the players brought to the table, what did they produce after the trade? (The numbers seem to indicate that the deal helped both teams to some extent.)

Here are each player's post-trade stats and, for fun, some of their top YouTube highlights:

F Wayne Gretzky -- 791 games, 311 goals, 877 assists, 1188 points

F Marty McSorley -- 714 games, 84 goals, 211 assists, 295 points.

F Mike Krushelnyski -- 455 goals, 95 goals, 132 assists, 227 points.

F Jimmy Carson -- 466 goals, 171 goals, 183 assists, 354 points.

F Martin Gelinas -- 1273 goals, 309 goals, 351 assists, 660 points.

F Jason Miller -- 6 games, 0 points.

F Martin Rucinsky -- 961 games, 241 goals, 371 assists, 612 points.

D Nick Stajduhar -- 2 games, 0 points.

Key numbers

Who got more in the deal? Here are the differences in total production for each team's acquisitions after the trade was made:

• The Oilers got 748 more man-games.
• The Oilers got 231 more goals.
• The Kings got 315 more assists.
• The Kings got 84 more points.

The Oilers went on to win the Stanley Cup (their only one without Gretzky) in 1990. The Kings made the final once during Gretzky's tenure, losing to Montreal in 1993.

It seems like both teams made out fairly well, especially since Gretzky was approaching free agency and may have left the Oilers with nothing in return at all.

The architects

What ever became of the $15 million US in cash? Well, it retired in 1996 after the Royal Canadian Mint discontinued the Canadian $2 bills Pocklington requested the payment be made in. (Just kidding.)

Speaking of the Oilers owner, what happened to the two men responsible for the deal going through -- Pocklington and Kings owner Bruce McNall?

Peter Pocklington: Eventually had to sell the Oilers in 1998 (but not before threatening to move the team), and declared personal bankruptcy in 2008. He was charged with bankruptcy fraud a year later, and a plea bargain spared him prison time in favour of house arrest.

Bruce McNall: Was convicted for two counts of bank fraud, one count of wire fraud and one count of conspiracy and spent more than four years in prison. He was released early in 2001 for good behavior and is still close friends with Gretzky and many other players.

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Argonauts blast Alouettes in Jim Popp's return to sidelines

The Toronto Argonauts took full advantage of the Montreal Alouettes' early turnovers to gain some breathing room atop the CFL's East Division.

John Chiles caught a pair of Ricky Ray touchdown passes and Chad Owens returned a missed field goal attempt 118 yards in the first quarter Thursday to send Toronto on to emphatic 38-13 victory over Montreal.

Ray threw his third touchdown pass to Jason Barnes in the second quarter and Noel Prefontaine added a field goal moments later as the Argonauts roared to a 31-0 lead in general manager Jim Popp's coaching return for Alouettes.

Noel Devine fumbled three times as Montreal turned over the ball six times in its first game since head coach Dan Hawkins was fired.

"You never expect to get a start like that," Toronto head coach Scott Milanovich said. "That's what you're always hoping for, to take advantage of the turnovers. We played great on defence, played great on special teams, and offensively we played great for a half and that's why we were able to get that lead."

The Argonauts (4-2) won their third straight game to increase their lead in the East to four points over Montreal and Hamilton.

"It's a long season," said Ray, who missed Toronto's last game with a knee injury. "We're pretty happy with where we're at right now but there's still two thirds of the season to play. Nobody really wins first place early in the year but you definitely give yourself a lot of breathing room or separation and that's what we wanted to do is to get the lead and be able to put the pressure on the other teams."

Ray appeared to tweak his knee in the first half and gave way to backup quarterback Zach Collaros with Toronto firmly in the driver's seat.

Alouettes keep sliding

The Alouettes (2-4), meanwhile, fell to 1-3 at home in 2013 to begin Popp's third stint as coach in his 18-year career with Montreal. He replaced Hawkins, who was brought in after Marc Trestman left to become head coach of the NFL's Chicago Bears, after just five games.

"We weren't good enough. You've got to be better than that," said Popp, who fell to 10-14 overall in the regular season. "You dig a hole like that in the first quarter, you get way behind, our offence was pinned deep, it takes you out of your game plan."

Ray threw an 11-yard touchdown pass to Chiles 1:18 into the first quarter on Toronto's second play from scrimmage after Shane Horton recovered Devine's fumble on the opening kickoff.

Chiles was then wide open in the end zone at 8:17 to catch Ray's 19-yard touchdown pass to give the Argonauts a 14-0 lead.

"Somebody got mixed up and I popped open," Chiles said. "It felt good."

Owens ran 118 yards to increase the lead to 21-0 at 10:57 after Alouettes kicker Sean Whyte missed wide left on a 49-yard field goal attempt.

Toronto had built up a 31-0 lead when Whyte kicked a 48-yard field goal to end the first half that was greeted by mock cheers from the home fans.

Montreal quarterback Anthony Calvillo made it 32-10 when he threw a 48-yard touchdown pass to Brandon London 34 seconds into the fourth quarter. Whyte added a 15-yard field goal.

Three fumbles

It was the first of three meetings between the teams over the next five weeks.

Two of Devine's three fumbles came in the first quarter. Tyrrell Sutton also fumbled and Calvillo was intercepted as Montreal turned over the ball four times in the first half.

"When you shoot yourself in the foot by turning the ball over that does not help at all," Calvillo said. "I thought the guys up front played very well but we didn't sustain enough drives. We had two long drives where we were backed up and we got the ball out to midfield, but it just wasn't enough tonight."

Owens, who recovered a fumble by teammate Andre Durie on a 19-yard reception on the Argonauts' first offence play of the game, had a potential second touchdown called back in the second. Owens' 70-yard punt return was called back because of an illegal block.

Prefontaine kicked a 43-yard field goal to make it 31-0. He added a single in the third quarter and two more field goals in the fourth.

The two field goal attempts by Whyte were the only times Montreal made it across midfield on offence in the opening half.

"We've just got to stay humble and keep working because this is a long season and anything can happen," Owens said. "So we go back to the drawing board, we look at the film and take the good and the bad and we get better for it."

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3rd and Long: Did Als jump gun with Dan Hawkins firing?

The Montreal Alouettes relieved Dan Hawkins of his coaching duties just five games into the season last week, and 3rd and Long hosts Andy McNamara and Carlan Gay debate whether it was too soon.

The Montreal Alouettes made a major move last week, relieving head coach Dan Hawkins of his duties just five games into his tenure with the team. 3rd and Long hosts Andy McNamara and Carlan Gay debate whether the Als may have pushed the panic button too quickly. 

Saskatchewan Roughriders running back Kory Sheets has been running rampant against defences all year, and the guys discuss whether he will break the CFL's all-time rushing record. 

Former CFL cheerleader Shannon Kelly also drops by for "Fan Appreciation Day" to talk about some of her favourite football memories.

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Canada's Eugenie Bouchard ousted from Rogers Cup

Eugenie Bouchard couldn't hide her frustration Wednesday night at the Rogers Cup in Toronto.

The rising Canadian women's tennis star first tossed a racket on top of her bag after blowing a double-break point opportunity during the final set of a second-round loss to Petra Kvitova.

The racket was on the move again moments later as Bouchard threw it to the ground after double-faulting to give the defending champion a service break. The racket bounced up and almost struck her in the face.

The sixth-seeded Czech went on to close out the 6-3, 6-2 win in 86 minutes at Rexall Centre.

"I felt like I wasn't playing my best, especially serving-wise," Bouchard said. "I usually rely on my serve to dominate the point and control. I wasn't doing that as well today so I was definitely a little bit frustrated."

While composed for the rest of the match, the loss was a definite learning experience for the 19-year-old from Montreal. The 2012 Wimbledon junior champ can also build on her first turn in the Rogers Cup spotlight after playing two straight nights in the showcase match on centre court.

'I felt like I wasn't playing my best, especially serving-wise. I usually rely on my serve to dominate the point and control. I wasn't doing that as well today so I was definitely a little bit frustrated.'—Canada's Eugenie Bouchard

Kvitova used her strong serve and powerful ground strokes to keep Bouchard on her heels. She seemed to have a read on Bouchard's game, eating up the cut shots and drops that were working a night earlier for the young Canadian.

Kvitova also seemed to have a knack for winning the key points, helped at times by Bouchard's unforced errors.

"I think it was a hard-fought battle and tougher than the score would indicate," Bouchard said.

The wild-card entry, currently ranked 62nd in the world, is in her first full season as a pro on the WTA Tour. Bouchard has posted some impressive wins this year and is trying her best to soak up the experience each week.

"I know I can hang with the top girls," she said. "You know, in the points, we hit a lot of competitive points today. Obviously she would come on top of more than I did, so it's just about working on being more consistent and being able to finish the points like she does and hopefully get better that way."

Toronto's Sharon Fichman falls

Earlier in the day, Jelena Jankovic knocked out the other Canadian left in the singles draw of the $2.369-million US tournament. The veteran Serb defeated Toronto's Sharon Fichman 6-4, 7-6 (6).

Top-seeded Serena Williams made quick work of her first opponent by defeating Italy's Francesca Schiavone 6-3, 6-2. Williams, who received a first-round bye, needed 75 minutes to complete the victory.

Her next opponent will be 13th-seeded Kirsten Flipkens of Belgium, who posted a 7-5, 3-6, 6-2 win over Kiki Bertens of the Netherlands.

"I felt good, I felt solid," Williams said. "I obviously made a few errors but it's just my first match on hard [court] in a really long time. I also played a really good player so it was a good match."

There was one minor upset in the early afternoon as 11th-seeded Russian Maria Kirilenko dropped a 7-5, 7-5 decision to Alize Cornet of France. In the late match on the grandstand court, Sorana Cirstea of Romania upset ninth-seeded Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark 5-7, 7-6 (0), 6-4.

Seventh-seeded Marion Bartoli of France looked strong in her first competitive match since winning at Wimbledon last month. She defeated American qualifier Lauren Davis in straight sets.

"I didn't want to put too much pressure on myself because the last two times I played in Toronto I lost first round," she said. "So I just wanted to enjoy myself on the court and try my hardest. Obviously being able to win 6-0, 6-3 was pretty good for me."

Straight-set victories

Several seeded players posted comfortable straight-set victories.

Fourth-seeded Li Na of China beat Russia's Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 6-1, 6-4, fifth-seeded Sara Errani of Italy topped Klara Zakopalova 6-2, 7-6 (2) and 10th-seeded Roberta Vinci of Italy downed Ekaterina Makarova of Russia 6-0, 6-4.

Also Wednesday, No. 16 seed Ana Ivanovic of Serbia beat Italy's Flavia Pennetta 6-4, 6-4 and American Sloane Stephens, the No. 14 seed, got by Germany's Mona Barthel 6-3, 4-6, 6-3.

No. 12 seed Samantha Stosur of Australia defeated Spain's Carla Suarez Navarro 1-6, 6-2, 6-3 and Magdalena Rybarikova of Slovakia defeated American Varvara Lepchenko 6-4, 6-2.

In first-round doubles play, Fichman and Ottawa native Gabriela Dabrowski beat Pavlyuchenkova and Lucie Safarova of the Czech Republic 6-4, 6-7 (5), 10-8.

There was a short rain delay in the morning due to wet weather. Warm, sunny and breezy conditions were the norm through the afternoon and into the evening.

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Canada's Milos Raonic, Pospisil on to 3rd round at Rogers Cup

Milos Raonic feels that things may finally be looking up.

The big-serving Canadian, who is adjusting to a new coach and a more aggressive style, was never in trouble in second-round action Wednesday at the men's Rogers Cup as he downed Mikhail Youzhny 6-4, 6-4 just before torrents of rain crashed down on Uniprix Stadium in Montreal.

It was the first time since May the lanky right-hander put two wins together, and the victory was much more decisive than his three-set win over Jeremy Chardy in the opening round of the US$3.49-million hardcourt event.

"You sort of keep working away," said Raonic, who hired Ivan Ljubicic to replace Galo Blanco as his coach in May. "You keep hoping you get closer and closer to this.

"The thing is, I felt like I was getting closer definitely on the practice court, I just wasn't really doing it in the matches."

The Thornhill, Ont., product has maintained a career-high 13th spot in world rankings despite a 7-7 record over the last three months.

Raonic will play Juan Del Potro in the round of 16 on Thursday after the No. 6 seed defeated Ivan Dodig 6-4, 4-6, 7-5 in a match that went past midnight local time because of a rain delay.

Raonic, whose match with Youzhny was also delayed by rain, will get the chance to test himself against an elite player and see where his makeover to a more attacking style stands.

Youzhny, a winner two weeks ago in Gstaad, ended a six-match winning streak.

"The pieces are sort of coming together," said Raonic. "I still made a few errors in some critical situations where I wouldn't want to, but mostly I played clean.

'The pieces are sort of coming together...I know I can still do much better. Obviously, when the opportunities arise against top guys, that's where I'm really going to try to push myself to show the best of myself. But I still know there's a lot of steps I need to take.'—Milos Raonic

"I think if I keep working away, those little pieces will come together better and those errors will disappear. I know I can still do much better. Obviously, when the opportunities arise against top guys, that's where I'm really going to try to push myself to show the best of myself. But I still know there's a lot of steps I need to take."

Wednesday night also saw the biggest upset of the tournament so far with Alex Bogomolov Jr. defeating third-seeded David Ferrer 6-2, 6-4. Bogomolov sits a full 80 spots below Ferrer in the ATP rankings at No. 83.

Raonic and Canada's second-highest ranked player, No. 71 Vasek Pospisil, were the only Canadians to reach the round of 16 as Frank Dancevic of Niagara Falls, Ont., Filip Peliwo of Vancouver and Jesse Levine of Ottawa all lost.

Pospisil, of Vernon, B.C., downed Radek Stepanek 6-2, 6-4 on a day that also saw Andy Murray and Rafael Nadal both return to action.

Andy Murray, Rafael Nadal move on

Murray, in his first match since his stirring victory at Wimbledon in June, shook off some rust and battled a swirling wind to down Marcel Granollers 6-4, 7-6 (2) on centre court.

The Scotsman won his 13th straight match, including his victories at Wimbledon, where be became the first men's champion from Britain in 77 years.

On Thursday, Murray will face Ernests Gulbis, who beat Fabio Fognini 6-3, 1-6, 6-1. Murray is 5-0 against Gulbis in his career.

"I was pretty nervous beforehand — that was a good sign," said Murray. "I'm pretty ready to move forward and not think too much about Wimbledon and concentrate on the U.S. Open.

"I think in some ways, it's nice. I'll probably never feel that same pressure again. That's why I was nervous today. That's why I'm really happy. It wasn't my best tennis, but the nerves were there and that's a good sign."

A two-time Rogers Cup champion, Nadal was also back on court for the first time since Wimbledon, where he lost in the first round. The Spaniard, who arrived a week early to work on his hardcourt game, made short work of Levine in a 6-2, 6-0 win.

"I'm pleased about the victory, first thing," said Nadal, who is seeded fourth. "After seven weeks without playing a match, starting in a very tough tournament on a fast court, to be through to the third round is good."

Levine made nine double faults, which he put down to soreness in his elbow that he hopes will be cleared up before the U.S. Open at the end of August.

"He really doesn't let you go," Levine said of Nadal, who has won both of their meetings. "Once he gets you under wrap, you're in trouble. It's tough."

Peliwo fell 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 to Denis Istomin. The 2012 Wimbledon and U.S. Open junior champion had posted his first Rogers Cup win in the first round over Jarkko Nieminen.

He was disappointed to lose, but was pleased he was able to compete with top ATP Tour players.

"To be able to keep up with these guys, have chances to beat them, it's a great feeling," said Peliwo. "There's definitely a lot of confidence, a lot of positives to take from these matches.

"It's something to build on for the weeks and the months to come."

Istomin takes on two-time defending champion and top seed Novak Djokovic in the round of 16.

Nadal will next face 15th-seeded Jerzy Janowicz, who outlasted Dancevic 3-6, 6-3, 7-5.

Pospisil's ranking will rise

Pospisil's next match will be a first meeting with fifth-seeded Tomas Berdych, who beat Alexander Dolgopolov 6-3, 6-4.

Pospisil's No. 71 ranking will rise from this week's performance after reaching the third round of a Masters series tournament for the first time.

"Everything is going very well for me, indeed," the 23-year-old said. "But this is thanks to the hard work I've been doing.

"It is paying off right now. Everything is falling into place. The goal I had set for myself for the end of this year was, at best, to be top 50. But later, because I had been sick [a bout of mono early in the year], I thought I could try for top-70."

Pospisil looked to be cruising when he took a 5-2 second-set lead with his fifth service break of the match but then lost on his own serve.

He made no mistakes on his next service game, taking all four points.

Pospisil, still heavy in the legs from a victory in a Challenger series event in Vancouver on Sunday followed by an overnight flight to Montreal, scored his first win over a top-20 opponent Tuesday when he ousted John Isner.

"My match against John maybe rates higher in terms of the moment itself, but this is the first time I ever reached the third round here, or at a Masters or anything like that," he said. "Just knowing that I'm improving, going in the right direction with my game gives me confidence. Things are very clear for me at the moment, so I'll just keep working in that direction and see where that will take me."

Pospisil was among a record five Canadians to reach the second round.

Elsewhere, qualifier Marinko Matosevic caught a break when his 10th-seeded opponent Tommy Haas retired during the first set with a shoulder injury. Matosevic will play Benoit Paire, who ousted eighth-seeded Stanislas Wawinka 6-2, 7-6 (2).

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PGA Championship: Golfers to watch

The 95th PGA Championship begins Thursday on the East Course at Oak Hill Country Club in Rochester, N.Y., with Tiger Woods's attempt at his first major tournament victory since 2008 garnering a lot of attention.

Woods was dominant last weekend at the Bridgestone Invitational, where his seven-stroke win was highlighted by a second-round 61 that matched his career-low score.

"I've certainly had my share of chances to win," he told reporters on Tuesday. "The key is to keep giving myself chances, and eventually I'll start getting them."

Woods has nine top-10 finishes in 17 majors since he won the U.S. Open at Torrey Pines in 2008.

But he isn't the only golfer playing this week. Woods's longtime foe, Phil Mickelson, recently won the Scottish Open and the Open Championship.

Mickelson appeared to welcome a showdown with Woods.

"If I can play as well as I can at the same time he's doing the same, I would love that opportunity," said Mickelson, who has four top-three finishes in his past nine majors.

Adam Scott and 2013 Canadian Open champion Brandt Snedeker also are peaking at the right time, Matt Kuchar seems poised to win a major and Lee Westwood and Hunter Mahan have the skill set to contend on the 7,145-yard layout.

Each is featured in our gallery above of golfers to watch this week.

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Frers: Eskimos plagued by poor line play

With a third of its season in the books, Edmonton finds itself in last place in the CFL's West Division with a 1-5 record. Until the Eskimos get stronger along the line of scrimmage, they will continue to struggle.

With a third of their season in the books, the Edmonton Eskimos find themselves in last place in the CFL's West Division with a 1-5 record entering their bye week.

When a team is struggling to win games, changes are certain to come, and often it doesn't take much to turn things around. But until the Eskimos get stronger along the line of scrimmage, they will have a hard time improving.

Edmonton's 30-29 loss at home against Hamilton last week could be blamed on Grant Shaw's 50-yard field-goal miss in the final seconds, but the real reason the Eskimos have struggled to consistently execute is because the foundation of their team is weak.

O-line young, inexperienced

One of the big question marks heading into the year was how well the young offensive line would come together. Three of the unit's starting five are in their first CFL season, and pairing an inexperienced quarterback with an inexperienced offensive line is a risky combination.

Mike Reilly attempted to stay upbeat after last week's loss by suggesting to the media that the linemen in front of him have remained confident. But confidence has very little to do with the Edmonton offence's inability to sustain drives. Of greater concern is the line's inability to pick up defensive blitzes.

Although the line has given up only 14 sacks this season, there was a defender in Reilly's face on almost every play during the Hamilton game, and the Ticats' defensive line is average at best.

Edmonton has also struggled to establish a rushing attack, with Hugh Charles averaging only 35 yards on the ground in the team's five losses.

In spite of the poor play, the coaching staff has remained patient, recognizing that this group needs game experience. But after six weeks, it's definitely time to find some players who have more experience and skill. 

Big names on D not performing

I can't stand players who make a career out of hype rather than performance. These are the guys who do very little on the field other than perform well-choreographed celebration dances meant to bring attention to themselves. Last season I criticized Calgary defensive lineman Stevie Baggs for underperforming, and this year I'm calling out Edmonton's Odell Willis and Marcus Howard.

I've mentioned Willis a few times in my columns this season, and I still feel like he has the tools to be a dominant player if he wants to. But I continue to see a lack of effort and a lack of results. Unfortunately for the Eskimos, it looks like his sloppy play is contagious, because now Howard is not playing much better than Willis.

For Edmonton to have success, these two players need to make quarterbacks uncomfortable in the pocket, and, simply said, they are not getting this done. Both guys have gotten into the habit of thinking "close is good enough." But they don't get paid to almost make a few plays. They were given large contracts this year to affect every play on defence.

Willis and Howard combined for four defensive tackles and one sack against Hamilton. (Reality Check: no one blocked Willis on his sack, and yet he predictably celebrated like he had done something spectacular.) To make matters worse, they are doing an even poorer job of stopping the run. Currently Edmonton ranks last in the West in rushing yards allowed.

The first Hamilton touchdown was rushed in from the 8-yard line. Both Howard and Willis were driven back on the play to the goal line like they were playing on skates. Willis was eventually thrown into the goal post. That is simply embarrassing play by two of Edmonton's supposed top defenders.

Great players are called on to make plays at critical times in the game. At 12:38 of the fourth quarter, after the Eskimos had just scored on a nice long drive to bring the game within five points, Hamilton found itself in a second-and-long situation. The result? No pressure off the edge, allowing Greg Ellingson to score a major that made it a 12-point game.

At this point in the year, I would reduce Willis's playing time, like the Winnipeg Blue Bombers did in 2011. That would send a clear message to Howard that, if his play doesn't improve, the same fate would be in store for him.

Either these two players start performing, or Edmonton should not waste any time in replacing them with players who can get the job done.

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Jose Reyes' leadoff homer sends Blue Jays past Mariners

SEATTLE (AP) Josh Johnson believed the mechanical changes he was attempting to make would finally lead to a successful outing and an end to his lengthy losing streak for the Toronto right-hander.

Walking out to the mound with a 1-0 lead thanks to Jose Reyes taking Felix Hernandez deep certainly helped.

``It awesome. You have to be almost perfect most of the time with him out there,'' Johnson said. ``Offense did an awesome job.''

Reyes homered on the first pitch of the game, added an RBI single to cap Toronto's big fourth inning, and the Blue Jays handed Seattle ace Felix Hernandez his first loss since late May with a 7-2 win over the Mariners on Tuesday.

The Blue Jays battered Hernandez (11-5) and knocked him out after just five innings, matching his shortest start of the season.

A leading contender for a second AL Cy Young Award, Hernandez got no help from his defense that committed three errors that led to three unearned runs while he was on the mound.

``It was a struggle. A lot of it was I fell behind,'' Hernandez said. ``A leadoff homer; that was a tough game.''

While Hernandez was struggling, Johnson was throwing one of his best games of the season with his potential spot in the rotation at stake. Johnson threw five scoreless innings and won for the first time since June 23, snapping a six-game losing streak.

Toronto manager John Gibbons pulled Johnson after only 86 pitches, but wanted to make sure he left with his confidence high.

``He maybe had one more left in him, but I figured instead of having to bail him out maybe that next inning, for all that he's been through, let him finish with five good, strong ones,'' Gibbons said. ``... A lot of that was let him go out on a clean slate and feel good.''

Reyes brought the huge contingent of Blue Jays' fans to their feet from the start. He lined Hernandez's first fastball of the night 399 feet into the seats in right for his eighth homer of the season. It was Reyes' 18th career leadoff homer and first this season.

For Hernandez, it was just the second leadoff homer allowed in his career and a precursor to a tough night.

``He's one of the best pitchers in the game,'' Reyes said. ``I had that approach before the game I was looking for a fastball right in the middle the first pitch and I try to put my best swing and that's what happened.''

Toronto scored three times in the fourth helped by two Seattle errors. Emilio Bonifacio had the big hit with a two-out double into the gap in right-center field.

Bonifacio's hit came after three defensive breakdowns by Seattle: Kyle Seager committed his second error of the night, shortstop Brad Miller threw wildly to second trying to start a double play and Miller failed to hold the ball when tagging Brett Lawrie on a stolen base.

Reyes followed Bonifacio with an RBI single to cap the big inning. Toronto then scored twice more in the fifth when Colby Rasmus dropped an RBI single on a two-out, 0-2 pitch from Hernandez. That was followed by Lawrie's RBI single and a 6-0 lead.

Seattle's ugly night defensively was capped in the seventh when Raul Ibanez committed the Mariners' fourth error spiking an attempted throw from left field into the ground just a few feet in front of him and allowing Jose Bautista to score Toronto's seventh run.

Toronto's offensive output made it an easy night for Johnson, who in his previous four starts had an ERA of 14.06, but was masterful against the Mariners.

It was the second time this season Johnson didn't allow a run and a key for him was getting out of the first when Seattle had runners on the corners and one out. Johnson got Kendrys Morales to ground into a double play and Seattle never got a runner to third base until the seventh on Miller's two-run triple.

Johnson said his focus was staying more on top of his pitches, which helped keep the ball down in the strike zone.

``It was just a small little adjustment I made and it made a world of difference,'' Johnson said.

Notes: Rasmus made a highlight catch robbing Morales of a potential home run in the sixth inning pulling in a deep drive to center field. ... Seattle optioned closer Tom Wilhelmsen to Triple-A Tacoma on Tuesday in the hopes he can rediscover the command of his fastball. Seattle recalled reliever Carter Capps to take Wilhelmsen's spot. Seattle also released OF Jason Bay, who was designated for assignment on July 29. ... Texas' Ian Kinsler is the only other batter to hit a leadoff homer off Hernandez. ... The four errors by Seattle were its most since committing six vs. the Angels in September 2011.

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Record day for Canadian men at Rogers Cup

It was a record day for Canada at the men's draw of the Rogers Cup in Montreal.

Milos Raonic, Filip Peliwo, Frank Dancevic and Vasek Pospisil all pulled off three-set victories Tuesday to advance to the second round of the Masters 1000 hardcourt tennis event.

With Jesse Levine's win on Monday, it put five Canadians into the second round — one more than made it that far in 1992.

"It's amazing," said Dancevic, a Niagara Falls, Ont., native who downed Lu Yen-Hsun of Taiwan 5-7, 7-6 (6), 6-1. "It's a Masters series event and pretty much everyone you play here is at a high level, ranked in the top-50, so to have four guys through the first round shows a lot about how far Canadian tennis has come along.

"It's really great to see and it's been showing up more and more in all the tournaments."

It was a first win in an ATP event this year for Dancevic, who has been doing well of late in lower-level tournaments.

'I'm very proud and happy for the guys that have been winning. But it doesn't affect myself personally. It's great to have [these] kind of good results, but I've got to take care of my business for myself.'—Canada's Milos Raonic

In the feature evening match on centre court of the $3.49-million US tournament, the 13th-seeded Raonic, of Thornhill, Ont., used his booming serve to overcome an otherwise so-so outing to defeat France's Jeremy Chardy 6-3, 4-6, 7-5 in his first-round match.

Raonic said he felt no added pressure to keep the Canadian winning streak going.

"I'm very proud and happy for the guys that have been winning," he said. "But it doesn't affect myself personally.

"It's great to have this kind of good results, but I've got to take care of my business for myself."

The late match saw two-time defending Rogers Cup champion Novak Djokovic make short work of Florian Mayer with a 6-2, 6-1 win.

Vancouver's Peliwo, who became the first Canadian male to win a junior grand slam event at Wimbledon in 2012, staved off a match point with what he called a "lucky" shot at the net for a 3-6, 7-5, 3-1 win over 39th-ranked Jarkko Nieminen.

The Finnish left-hander was forced to retire in the third set with a hamstring injury.

Pospisil, of Vernon, B.C., upset one of the hottest players on the ATP Tour as he outlasted 20th-ranked American John Isner 5-7, 7-6 (5), 7-6 (4) before a roaring crowd on centre court.

"I'm feeling very good about my game lately," said Pospisil, who was coming off a victory last week in a Challenger series event in Vancouver. "From the baseline I wasn't feeling too comfortable because the conditions are extremely different from Vancouver.

"I felt a little bit of difficulty controlling the ball from the baseline."

The only Canadian to fall thus far was Peter Polansky, also of Thornhill, who got to the main draw through the qualifying tournament but then lost to ninth-seeded Kei Nishikori on Monday.

The Canadian men had already reached a milestone this year when they defeated Italy to reach the Davis Cup semifinals for the first time.

And with Raonic ranked 13th and Pospisil recently risen to 71st, it is the first time Canada has had two players in the world's top 75 since Andrew Sznejder and Grant Connell in 1990.

"We have a lot of capable and good players that can play at a high level," said Pospisil, who beat a top-20 player for the first time. "It's just thrilling, really. There's so many of us right now in the second round."

While Canada may be on the rise, the United States has taken a mighty fall.

No American in top-20 rankings

Isner's loss means that when next week's rankings come out, there will be no American in the top-20 for the first time in 40 years of ATP rankings. Isner reached the Rogers Cup semifinals last year and didn't defend those points.

At Wimbledon in June, for the first time in 101 years no American reached the third round.

Isner, who was coming off a win and a an appearance in a final in his last two tournaments, wasn't talkative after the match and said he just wanted to go home.

Peliwo looked ready for an early exit when he fell behind 3-0 in the second set and then was taken to match point with 32-year-old Niemenin leading 5-4. But he found a way out of that jam and went on to win the set and the match.

"Basically, I went to the net after a rally, hit a pretty lame volley, kind of popped it up," said the Peliwo 19-year-old said. "He hit a forehand, I kind of moved to the right expecting it down the line and I guess he changed his mind a bit and hit it right towards my direction.

"I just threw my hands up like that. Just reflex."

Peliwo is ranked 353rd in the world, but the victory over 39th-ranked Niemenin should put him into the top-300.

"It's definitely the best feeling I've had in a while," he said. "It's such a big win for me.

"Ranking-wise, I'll get a lot of points. Confidence, to be able to say I beat a top-40 player. I'm still trying to realize what I did."

Peliwo will face 66th-ranked Denis Istomin of Uzbekistan in the second round on Wednesday.

Levine, of Ottawa, will be in tough against fourth-seeded Rafael Nadal, the former world No. 1 and two-time Rogers Cup champion.

Raonic goes up against Mikhail Youzhny.

Dancevic takes on 15th-seeded Jerzy Janowicz, who beat Julien Benneteau 3-6, 6-3, 7-5.

Pospisil will face No. 51 Radek Stepanek, who upset 12th seeded Nicolas Almagro 6-3, 6-7 (4), 6-3.

In other first-round matches, 13th-seeded Fabio Fognini downed Marcos Baghdatis 1-6, 6-1, 6-1, Nikolay Davidov ousted 14th-seeded Gilles Simon 2-6, 6-1, 6-1, Alex Bogolomov of Russia beat Michael Llodra of France 6-2, 4-6, 6-3 and Youzhny defeated Jurgen Melzer 6-4, 7-6 (3), and Alexander Dolgopolov beat Kevin Anderson 7-6 (4), 6-4.

In the second round, Nishikori downed Andreas Seppi 4-6, 7-5, 6-1

In doubles, Nadal and Pablo Andujar fought off two match points to beat fellow Spaniards David Ferrer and Feliciano Lopez 6-7 (2), 6-4, 12-10.

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Chick: Canada all set up front for FIBA tourney

You may think it's a case of viewing the glass as half full, but not having Canada's two newest NBA players available for the FIBA Americas tournament has made senior men's national coach Jay Triano's job a bit easier. With No. 1 overall selection Anthony Bennett and No. 13 pick Kelly Olynyk out with injuries, it's crystallized the front court situation very quickly.

You may think it's a case of viewing the glass as half full, but not having Canada's two newest NBA players available for the FIBA Americas tournament has made senior men's national coach Jay Triano's job a bit easier.

With No. 1 overall selection Anthony Bennett and No. 13 pick Kelly Olynyk out with injuries, it's crystallized the front court situation very quickly. Tristan Thompson, selected fourth overall in the 2011 NBA draft (whom Cavaliers' teammate Bennett supplanted as the highest-drafted Canadian this summer) and Andrew Nicholson, chosen 19th overall in 2012, are cast in stone up front for Canada.

In all likelihood Thompson will be seeing major minutes at centre with Nicholson playing the stretch four, and as the team's camp continued in Toronto this week, Thompson said he's impressed with the improvements he's seen from the Orlando Magic forward.  

"He's definitely worked on his post moves this summer, being able to finish with his left hand now," Thompson said of Nicholson. "Before he always went right."

For his part from a shooting perspective, Nicholson is looking for the sweet spot that FIBA's international court might give him.

"I know the international (three-point) line is a little closer, and that's usually where I shoot from in the NBA," Nicholson said.

Planning ahead

But while the final Team Canada roster that jumps on a plane for Venezuela on Aug. 16 (the FIBA Americas tourney tips off Aug. 30) will likely contain four NBA players, a big key is going to be those other guys who possess international basketball experience. While the much-talked about day when Canada will be forced to cut NBA players for World Cup and Olympic squads is still a few years off, you get the feeling from coach Jay Triano that this is a golden opportunity in itself to combine the young NBA talent of Thompson, Nicholson and Cory Joseph with the global experience of players like Carl English, Levon Kendall and Jermaine Anderson.

"We've told these guys all along, we've got to work together," Triano said last week. "It's got to be a combination of the European players helping the NBA guys adapt to that game and the NBA guys teaching the European guys what it's like to be a professional basketball player in the best league in the world."

In a way, it's paying it forward. Make sure players like Thompson and Nicholson learn those FIBA intricacies now, so they can assist the likes of Andrew Wiggins and Trey Lyles down the road.

And adjusting to that international game is not always easy. Simply stacking a team with NBA names does not generally work in international tournaments, as the 2004 U.S. men's Olympic team can attest. That's why the role of a shooting guard like English is so important to Canada. The 32-year-old Newfoundlander -- once one of the young guns of the national program -- has been playing in Europe since 2005, and just came off a big year with Spanish club Asefa Estudiantes.

"It's those little things," English told me about the nuances he's passing along to the NBA guys. "Mostly footwork and their steps. A lot of things you get away with in the NBA, but overseas it doesn't matter if you're Kobe Bryant or Tristan Thompson, (the refs) don't care. They're going to call the game the way they see it."

Rule differences

Footwork and floor spacing is one thing, but it doesn't help when there are notable rule differences too.

"Something simple like (Triano) pointed out, when the ball is on the rim," English said regarding the FIBA goaltending rule, which unlike the NBA, allows a player to touch a ball the moment it makes contact with the rim. In the NBA, there's that imaginary cylinder that results in those goaltending calls.  

Plus, given the height and hops of some on the roster, that could be a good thing for Canada.

"It sounds easy, but once the game starts [I'm afraid] I'll still be thinking like I'm in the NBA," joked Thompson on Tuesday about the goaltending rule. "So I can do it in FIBA but then if I [start thinking like that in the NBA] it could lead to me getting to the bench."

Thompson was serious, however, when talking about keeping cooler heads and not pulling a Chris Webber, for instance.

"Players can't call timeout," he said, referring to the FIBA rule that only coaches can call timeouts and only through the scorer's table, not the refs. "It's definitely an adjustment we're going to have to make, especially in game situations where it's under two minutes and it's crunch time."

Family atmosphere

As for the camp itself, the chemistry appears to be very good again -- in many ways reminiscent of last summer's Canada Basketball orientation weekend, also at the Air Canada Centre. And before anyone throws rocks out of the greenhouse about player absences, it's worth noting that Bennett and Olynyk were both in attendance Friday to lend whatever support they could.

It's that family thing that general manager Steve Nash is trying to promote.

"Frankly it's not cool to put yourself above the team, and I think our guys understand that," the Los Angeles Lakers point guard said Friday. "Our players understand that, you may not represent the country this year, but you are still on the team."

Canada gets two tune-up exhibition games against Jamaica Thursday and Saturday at the former Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto.

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