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Baristas compete to represent Canada at the World Barista Championship in Italy

Baristas compete to represent Canada at the World Barista Championship in Italy

Yahoo17 hours ago
Wake up and smell the coffee! 17 competitors from across the country are competing at the Canadian National Barista Championship in Edmonton. It's all to represent Canada at the World Barista Championship in Milan, Italy in October.
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McIntosh wins second gold as GB earn diving bronze
McIntosh wins second gold as GB earn diving bronze

Yahoo

time3 hours ago

  • Yahoo

McIntosh wins second gold as GB earn diving bronze

Canadian teenager Summer McIntosh won another gold medal on Monday as she bids to make history at the World Aquatics Championships while Great Britain claimed a diving bronze. After winning the women's 400m freestyle final on Sunday, McIntosh has a chance to equal Michael Phelps' record of five individual titles at a single world championships. Her second final was in the 200m individual medley, and the 18-year-old won in two minutes 6.69 seconds, with American Alex Walsh second and Canada's Mary-Sophie Harvey third. Great Britain's Abbie Wood, 26, finished sixth as McIntosh stayed on course for a full house in Singapore. The three-time Olympic champion is also set to race in the 400m individual medley, 800m freestyle and 200m butterfly, with the latter being her next event on Wednesday. British divers Jack Laugher and Anthony Harding won bronze in the men's 3m synchronised final in what was almost a repeat of last year's Olympic podium. They were again third with a score of 405.33, while Mexico's Juan Celaya and Osmar Olvera were again second (449.28). But China's Olympic champion Wang Zongyuan has a new partner, Zheng Jiuyuan, and they proved too strong with 467.31. Harding said: "We've had a difficult year with different amounts of time off and coming back after the Olympics with a change of clubs [from Leeds to Sheffield], but we wanted to come here and get another medal under the belt on our journey towards LA [2028 Olympics]." Laugher added: "I've still got a few bits to work on but I've gained a lot of knowledge moving forwards to the individual later this week." Andrea Spendolini-Sirieix chose not to travel, having struggled with "mental blocks", so Lois Toulson, with whom she won an Olympic bronze last year, has a new partner in Maisie Bond. In their first world final together, they were fifth in the women's 10m synchro platform, as was fellow Briton Ben Proud in the men's 50m butterfly despite finishing within 0.04secs of his national record. Spendolini-Sirieix & Toulson snatch diving bronze Proud beats Mills to claim British 50m men's title

Projecting Edmonton Oilers' opening-night defence pairings, goalies for 2025-26
Projecting Edmonton Oilers' opening-night defence pairings, goalies for 2025-26

New York Times

time3 hours ago

  • New York Times

Projecting Edmonton Oilers' opening-night defence pairings, goalies for 2025-26

In a look at the Edmonton Oilers' projected opening-night forward lines last week, it became clear fans will see some tweaks on the skill lines. Entering the period leading up to training camp, the defensive pairings and goaltending depth charts appear more settled. There is some room for speculation, especially on defence. However, the top two pairings should be easy to predict based on past performance. Here's a look at what works, what should work and a wild card on defence and in goal. Advertisement The Oilers benefit from the consistency and high performance of Evan Bouchard and Mattias Ekholm on the top pair. The two men showed well again in 2024-25. Bouchard's exceptional outlet passing is a key to the duo's success. Ekholm's veteran savvy and instincts at both ends of the ice make the two players a complete tandem. All numbers five-on-five, via Natural Stat Trick These are exceptional outscoring totals, and the expected goal share is even more impressive. At five-on-five, the two men performed well during the regular season and did so while often playing against elite competition. Puck IQ tells us that Bouchard saw more minutes versus elites at five-on-five than any Oilers defenceman, and Ekholm saw more minutes as a percentage of overall ice time than the rest of Edmonton's blue. When the two men faced elites (a total of 321 minutes) together, the Oilers enjoyed an edge in Dangerous Fenwick (55 percent), which is similar to expected goals. At five-on-five, Ekholm-Bouchard are exceptional. Bouchard helped the Oilers' power play to 9.59 goals per 60 a year ago; the club managed just 6.63 goals per 60 when the No. 2 unit was on the ice. He also showed well in a very small penalty-killing sample. Ekholm played two minutes per game when the Oilers were short-handed and was effective when used on the power play. The answer to the question 'Can the Oilers win a Stanley Cup with Ekholm-Bouchard as top pair?' is a resounding yes. The team might have won it in the spring if both men were at something close to full health. Darnell Nurse and Jake Walman didn't play much together during the regular season, but there was enough chemistry to suggest that coach Kris Knoblauch would be wise to run the two men as the No. 2 unit in 2025-26. All numbers five-on-five, via Natural Stat Trick The numbers with Nurse and Walman together come with a small sample warning, but they are impressive all the same. The gap between actual goal share and expected suggests some luck, but even with regression (experts recommend 200 minutes for a pairing in order to be more sure of the numbers), the results would have been above average overall. Advertisement The coaching staff would be deploying two lefties on a unit that would see a lot of action versus elite competition. However, the results should overwhelm the bias in this case. Nurse on the power play averaged about one minute per game, but was not a difference-maker. He averaged 1:45 short-handed in 2024-25, a significant total. However, he has struggled in the last two seasons on the penalty kill compared to the Oilers' success when he is off the ice. An interesting fact that came in a small sample: After the deadline, Nurse-Walman were above average on the penalty kill when paired together. Knoblauch may want to use this duo in a similar way to Ekholm-Bouchard, playing them together all season. Fifty years ago, NHL teams deployed only five defencemen in a game. The fifth defenceman was often a utility player who could be deployed as a forward, on defence, and (usually) as a penalty killer. Those days are long gone, as NHL teams dress six defenders, enough for three pairings, every game. Brett Kulak qualifies as a utility defenceman because he can play anywhere on the depth chart. This past season, he was used (all numbers five-on-five) in all situations. His most common partners were Ty Emberson (574 minutes, 42 percent goal share), Nurse (399 minutes, 44 percent), Bouchard (202 minutes, 43 percent) and Troy Stecher (151 minutes, 40 percent). Unfortunately, none of the duos proved effective at five-on-five, and the organization may approach this fall's training camp with the idea of finding a third-pairing right-handed option to fit Kulak's style. He is a mobile defender who can help in the offensive zone, but as his career developed, Kulak spent more time taking care of his own end. Oilers general manager Stan Bowman plucked young defenceman Alec Regula off waivers in December from the Boston Bruins. Regula was injured at the time and was unable to play in any games (NHL or AHL) during the 2024-25 season. Advertisement His skill set lends itself to Edmonton's needs and was the reason Bowman grabbed him when available. Regula hasn't seen much action in the NHL (just 22 games for the Chicago Blackhawks after Bowman traded for him in 2019), but his passing ability and plus shot could play well next to Kulak. Regula is 6-foot-4, 208 pounds, so his size should be a plus should the Oilers use him alongside Kulak. Edmonton's third pairing is at least somewhat up in the air. Bowman may cast about for solutions higher up the depth chart, and the coaching staff might settle on Emberson or Stecher. The name to keep in mind as we approach August is Regula. He's under the radar now, but if he's healthy, Regula should get a full chance at training camp this fall. Oilers fans are laser-focused on a goaltending upgrade, but management did not make a change. Bowman kept his powder dry through the heart of summer trade season and appears content to return last year's tandem of Stuart Skinner and Calvin Pickard. Bowman may want to see what new goaltender coach Peter Aubry can do to improve Skinner's technique in net. The organization was burned a decade ago when Devan Dubnyk was overwhelmed by a coaching strategy ('the swarm') and a management group that was not supportive ('if you have to ask the question') to the point he was eventually flushed by the Oilers. He took about six months to regain his previous form and became the starter for the Minnesota Wild for several seasons. If the club can find a way to get Skinner mid-pack in five-on-five save percentage (he was there in 2022-23), the problem can be solved internally. It appears to be the way forward at this time. (Photo of Mattias Ekholm and Evan Bouchard: Steph Chambers / Getty Images)

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