Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - January 31, 2022, Winnipeg, Manitoba C M Y K PAGE C1 SPORTS SPORTS@FREEPRESS.MB.CA ● WINNIPEGFREEPRESS.COM MONDAY JANUARY 31, 2022 CONNECT WITH MANITOBA’S BEST SPORTS COVERAGE SECTION C▼ ON paper, the first half of the 2021-2022 AHL season went incredibly well for the Manitoba Moose. The Winnipeg Jets’ AHL affiliate headed into Sunday afternoon’s affair with the Abbotsford Canucks at 22-11-2- 1 — the fourth-best record in franchise history through 36 games. But the reality is, even though they’re sitting pretty in second place in the Central Division, the Moose are hoping the second half of the season looks much different. The pandemic has forced the Moose to go through countless changes all season long. The Jets have had no choice but to consistently call up play- ers to the taxi squad and the majority of the Moose have been sidelined at some point after testing positive for COVID-19. The club has dressed nearly 40 play- ers this season, with forward Tristin Langan being the latest name added to the list. Langan, a Swan Valley, Man., native, signed a professional tryout contract on Friday and made his Moose debut Saturday in a 4-3 loss to Ab- botsford. The Moose bounced back on Sunday to start the second half of their 72-game season with a 5-3 victory over the Canucks (15-13-3-1) at the Canada Life Centre in front of a sea of mostly empty seats. Current provincial health orders allow for a maximum of 250 fans in attendance. Despite what their record says (Man- itoba is the hottest team in the Central Division as they’ve gone 7-2-1-0 in their last 10), things have been far from easy. “It’s been all over the map,” said first- year Moose head coach Mark Morrison. “I think we’ve been a very resil- ient team. With all the changes and everything that’s happened from the beginning to now, I think we have 12 or 14 different bodies in than what we had before Christmas. They’ve been a resilient group and it doesn’t matter who they’re playing with or who they’re playing against or what the lineup looks like that night. The core guys seem to gel them together and they play hard and compete.” Morrison got one of his core guys back this weekend in Jeff Malott. The undrafted second-year forward out of Cornell University missed three games due to COVID. Malott had a goal and an assist on Saturday and two goals Sunday. Malott said this season has been a constant adjustment but the guidance of Morrison has helped soften the blows. “I think he does a good job of staying even keel,” Malott said postgame. Cen- tre Nicholas Jones also scored a pair for the Moose on Sunday and winger Haralds Egle chipped in with a goal and an assist. Arvid Holm made 27 saves to improve to 7-3-1-1 on the season. “When things are going well, our locker room’s great and we’ve got a lot of energy but he comes in and just makes sure we stick to our simple game and stick to what gives us success. And when things aren’t going our way, he’s quick to remind us of the things that turn the tide for us. I think it’s just a matter of him being this kind of calm, cool, and collected personality in the locker room that is contagious for us.” Malott has yet to experience a ‘nor- mal’ year of pro hockey. Last season saw the Moose playing at the Iceplex with not much, if anything, at stake as the AHL scrapped the Calder Cup play- offs for a second consecutive year. “It’s just been kind of a constant adjustment. It’s hard to predict what next week is gonna look like and it’s funny to think about what it looked like last week. It’s constantly changing and I think the biggest thing I’ll take away from these two years, and hopefully it’s just these two years, is finding a way to be prepared for any situation possible,” said Malott. “I think it’s just a matter of not get- ting too set into one routine or getting too fixated on anything.” The Calder Cup is on the line this year, though. If the Moose can get away from changing the nameplates on their locker room stalls every day and relying heavily on ECHL call-ups, this group could make some noise. This season will feature 23 teams in the playoffs with five rounds to decide the AHL’s champion. “We’ve got guys that have never played playoff hockey in this league and I think we have a lot of guys that are excited for that opportunity. It’s hard to tell right now obviously, but I can see in a couple weeks us getting some key guys back and really solidify our lineup and getting it back to when things were a little more predictable before Christmas,” said Malott. “But I mean, in the meantime, we have a great cast of guys that are ready to come and work and fill spots for us and it seems to be working.” The Moose return to action on Friday when they host the Texas Stars. taylor.allen@freepress.mb.ca Twitter: @TaylorAllen31 Moose thriving despite brutal circumstances TAYLOR ALLEN MOOSE 5 CANUCKS 3 JOHN WOODS / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Moose Nicholas Jones drives around Abbotsford’s Alex Kannok Leipert Sunday afternoon. ● JETS UPDATES ON C3 ● MORE COVERAGE ON X00, X00 Place in Qatar World Cup all but assured with rare victory over border rivals Canada conquers U.S. H AMILTON — Canada continued its march to Qatar 2022 on Sunday, bundling the 11th-ranked United States out of its way in a 2-0 victory. With four games remaining in the final round of CONCACAF World Cup qualifying, the 40th-ranked Canadian men are turning heads while turning aside all comers in the region. Unbeat- en Canada is on the verge of booking its ticket to soccer’s world showcase for the first time since 1986 — and only the second time ever. But with a game in El Salvador loom- ing on Wednesday, coach John Herd- man is not looking too far ahead — yet. “We’ve got a long way to go. We’re not qualified yet,” he said. “The first thing we said when we brought the boys together at the end of the game is, ‘it’s not done. It starts again — tomorrow. We’ve got El Salvador. “We’re not there yet. We need some more points … I won’t let these boys off the hook. They’ll get a little bit of time to enjoy the moment and then we’re back at it. And we’ve got to keep staying humble. Let’s not get too far ahead of ourselves.” El Salvador can’t be looking forward to the Canadian men’s visit. Canada (6-0-4, 22 points) has won five straight, tops the eight-team standings and boasts a 12-0-4 record in three rounds of qualifying. Also Sunday, No. 63 Panama won 3-2 at home over No. 57 Jamaica and No. 49 Costa Rica played No. 14 Mexico to a 0-0 draw in Mexico City. In late play, it was No. 70 El Salvador at No. 76 Honduras. That left Canada with a nine-point cushion over fifth-place Costa Rica (3-3-4, 13 points) with four games remaining. Come March, the top three teams will book their ticket to Qatar 2022 while the fourth-place side will face an Oceania country to see who joins them in representing North and Central America and the Caribbean. Costa Rica can finish with no more than 25 points. So the Canadian men, with 22 points and four games remain- ing, are just a couple of points away of ensuring at the least a fourth-place finish. The tie in Mexico kept the Americans in second place, ahead of the Mexicans on goal difference, with both teams on 18 points at 5-2-3, while Canada extend- ed its lead atop the standings. The Canadians went ahead early on a chilly afternoon Sunday at Tim Hortons Field with an opportune goal through Cyle Larin and then stood their ground, bending but not breaking as the Americans — who had 64 per cent possession — probed the home defence without success. It came down to Canada finishing chances and the Americans unable to take theirs. Still it made for a tense finale as the U.S. pressed hard through five minutes of extra time. Sam Adekugbe added the insurance goal in the 95th minute, on a solo rush after the Americans were caught deep in the Canada end. It was his first goal in 26 international appearances. Canada took the lead after just seven minutes when a Matt Turner goal kick hung up in the wind. Kamal Miller headed to the ball to Jonathan Osorio, who flicked it to Larin. The Besiktas striker played a give-and-go with Jonathan David and beat Turner with a right-footed shot as defenders struggled to catch him. It was Larin’s record 23rd goal for Canada in his 46th appearance, moving him past Dwayne De Rosario atop the men’s scoring list. Canada’s Christine Sinclair is the world’s all-time leading goal-scorer with 188. “Goooaall. Congrats Cyle Larin, well done young man and a great way to capture leading scorer,” tweeted De Rosario. “Keep it going.” It was also the kind of rapid-fire goal that the Canadian men, always danger- ous in transition with their speed and finishing ability, have become known for. — The Canadian Press CANADA 2 UNITED STATES 0 FRANK GUNN / THE CANADIAN PRESS Canada’s Cyle Larin falls under a challenge from United States’ Yunus Musah (front) and Miles Robinson. Hamilton fans got into things (below). C_01_Jan-31-22_FP_01.indd 1 2022-01-30 9:27 PM ;