National Sports

D.J. Smith appreciated the fight his team showed last season. The next step for the head coach of the Ottawa Senators is seeing that effort morph into tangible results.

The Winnipeg Jets aren't kids this year, says coach Paul Maurice. For years, Maurice has walked into rinks feeling as though his group was stacked with young talent. But heading into his eighth season behind the Jets bench, times have changed.

CALGARY — Can the arrival of a marquee goalie and a redistribution of the goalscoring load finally produce an extended playoff run for the Calgary Flames? The Flames have exited the first round of playoffs in mortifying fashion three of the last four

Leon Draisaitl is convinced the Edmonton Oilers can battle for their division's top rung again and last longer in the playoffs.

Vancouver Canucks captain Bo Horvat knows his team has a lot to prove this season. After finishing third in the Pacific Division with a 36-27-6 record last year, few onlookers believed the squad would make a deep post-season run.

The fields are slowly filling up for the national curling championships, events that have provided a beacon of light in what has been a dreary competitive season due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

CHICAGO — Jeremy Colliton replaced a beloved figure with the Chicago Blackhawks. Then his first full season with the team was interrupted by a pandemic.

MLS commissioner Don Garber says he feels for the league's three Canadian teams given the border issues caused by the pandemic.

The Toronto Maple Leafs feel like the problem has been identified. And they spent much of the off-season reshaping their roster, and looking inwards, in hopes of correcting the issue.

CALGARY — The National Sport School in Calgary that has produced Olympic and Paralympic champions is switching school divisions in order to survive.