National Sports

ALLEN — Braeden Cootes had two goals and three assists, Cameron Schmidt added two goals and one assist and Canada cruised to a 9-2 win over Slovakia at the under-18 men's world hockey championship on Thursday.

MONCTON — Markus Vidicek and Caleb Desnoyers each had a goal and an assist as the Moncton Wildcats topped the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies 5-3 on Thursday to take Game 1 of the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League conference semifinal series.

AVONDALE, La.

TORONTO — Stewart Johnston plans to ease into his new role as CFL commissioner. Johnston officially took office Thursday following 28 years at TSN. He'd served as the sports broadcaster's president since 2010.

MONTREAL — City buses in Montreal have dropped the expression "Go! Canadiens Go!" following a complaint to Quebec's language watchdog.

MADRID — Montreal's Gabriel Diallo made the most of a last-minute spot in the Madrid Open, beating Belgium’s Zizou Bergs 6-1, 6-2 in the opening round of the clay-court tournament. In women's competition, 25th seed Leylah Fernandez of Laval, Que.

WASHINGTON — Mike Matheson knows firsthand what playoff hockey in Montreal feels like, but even he can’t imagine how electric the Bell Centre’s atmosphere will be Friday night.

LOS ANGELES — For Leon Draisaitl, the answer is easy — the Edmonton Oilers simply need to find another gear. The Los Angeles Kings thumped the Oilers 6-2 on Wednesday to take a 2-0 lead in their best-of-seven first-round playoff series.

OTTAWA — Max Pacioretty politely declined to answer the question.

TORONTO — The owners of the Grand Slam of Curling series are planning to introduce a professional curling league next season. The Curling Group said Thursday that the "Rock League" will debut in April 2026.