National Sports

Allegations laid out in a sexual-assault lawsuit against Hockey Canada and eight unnamed players cannot be used as proof of any wrongdoing in the ongoing criminal trial of five hockey players, jurors in the case heard Thursday.

MANCHESTER, England (AP) — For Manchester United or Tottenham, a miserable campaign will end in Europa League glory. Despite both teams languishing in the bottom half of the Premier League, the Champions League is now just one game away.

LAS VEGAS — The oldest team left in Stanley Cup contention leans into its experience to navigate tense moments, and there's been plenty of them. The Edmonton Oilers with an average age of 30.

Cavalry FC midfielder Shamit Shome, who won two caps for Canada in 2020, has switched his international allegiance to Bangladesh. The 27-year-old Shome was born in Edmonton to parents who came from Bangladesh in their 20s.

OTTAWA — Paul LaPolice has a new coaching gig. The former CFL coach was named head coach of the Canadian men's national flag football team Thursday.

PITTSBURGH (AP) — The Pittsburgh Pirates fired manager Derek Shelton following a rocky opening month to the season that saw Pittsburgh quickly slip into last place in the NL Central. General manager Ben Cherington made the announcement Thursday.

Mikko Rantanen is showing exactly why Dallas was willing to pay such a hefty price to put him the roster. One of the players the Stars traded for Rantanen is also making a positive impact for his new team.

ROME — Canadian Gabriel Diallo lost his opening men's singles match Thursday at the Italian Open tennis tournament. Diallo, of Montreal, dropped a 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 decision to American Marcos Giron.

The chief executive of Quebecor Inc. warned Thursday that the company’s French-language sports television programming could be in jeopardy amid rising costs for broadcasting rights.

TORONTO — Max Pacioretty started the playoffs in the press box. Now it's hard to imagine the Maple Leafs without their veteran winger punishing opposition defencemen, hounding pucks in the offensive zone and scoring important goals.