Sports

Around the NSL: Rapid on top; Battle for second; Week 11 kicks off Saturday

Grace Anne Paizen 3 minute read Friday, Jul. 3, 2026

IT’S footy mayhem in this country at the moment.

Between covering the relentless men’s FIFA World Cup schedule and making time to watch the Northern Super League, yours truly has had a whirlwind three weeks (with 16 more days to go).

This edition is brief, but here are storylines from the week that was around the NSL.

Highlight of the week

Advertise With Us

Weather

Jul. 9, 12 AM: 15°c Clear Jul. 9, 6 AM: 13°c Sunny

Brandon MB

21°C, Sunny

Full Forecast

Canada gets its chance ‘to go after a giant’

Jerrad Peters 5 minute read Preview

Canada gets its chance ‘to go after a giant’

Jerrad Peters 5 minute read Friday, Jul. 3, 2026

A very different Canada will take on Morocco in today’s World Cup rematch (12 p.m., TSN & CTV). Different in personnel; different in preparation. And very, very different in what it expects of itself.

Three-and-a-half years ago, the Canadian men’s soccer team wrapped up its group stage campaign with a 2-1 loss to the Moroccans in Qatar. Having already been beaten by Belgium and Croatia, it caught the next flight home. The Atlas Lions, meanwhile, roared into the semifinals.

Now, three-and-a-half years might not seem all that long, but when Canada takes the pitch just prior to noon in Houston its lineup will include two, possibly three players — tops — who started that game at Al Thumama Stadium.

Goalkeeper Milan Borjan has since retired from the national team, and defender Steven Vitória is assistant manager of Indonesia.

Read

Friday, Jul. 3, 2026

Soccer

NSL PHOTO
Vancouver Rise’s Morgan McAslan makes a save on Thursday against the Halifax Tides.

Around the NSL: Goalie clinics; first career goals; Wild have life

Grace Anne Paizen 4 minute read Preview

Around the NSL: Goalie clinics; first career goals; Wild have life

Grace Anne Paizen 4 minute read Friday, Jun. 26, 2026

Is there such a thing as an exciting draw? Yes. Did it happen three times this past week in the Northern Super League? Absolutely.

An early Week 9 kicked off in Halifax last Thursday in the first of three goalie clinics that led to three 1-1 draws by Sunday evening.

While the draws meant there was no movement in the Week 9 standings, it was a promising week for all six clubs around the league.

Here’s another look back at the week that was around the NSL.

Read

Friday, Jun. 26, 2026

SUPPLIED
Steve Bradley with a nice late season muskellunge. Species of considerable length, like pike, muskies and large lake trout must be held horizontally across the front of the subject or seated and supported by the angler’s legs.

Fish handling tips for fishes’ welfare and better photos

Patrick Nolan 5 minute read Preview

Fish handling tips for fishes’ welfare and better photos

Patrick Nolan 5 minute read Friday, Jun. 26, 2026

Most of us who spend any appreciable time fishing have encountered those special moments when we want to capture a photograph of the catch that has just made it into the boat.

Numerous circumstances might be driving our desire to get that photo: a neophyte’s first fish, an exceptional catch, the so called “fish of a lifetime,” or any number of other factors that really can be determined only by the angler and the photographer.

Regrettably, many of us have also experienced varying levels of satisfaction with the images captured after we have released the fish to swim free, leaving the angler wishing for more, at which time it’s too late.

The good news is that with a little bit of forethought and planning, we can consistently take great photos of the fish we catch — with the fishes’ welfare of utmost interest, of course.

Read

Friday, Jun. 26, 2026

Opinion

ETHAN CAIRNS / THE CANADIAN PRESS
Just eight of the World Cup’s 48 teams entirely native-born. From left: Brampton’s Promise David, Nigerian-born, Mississauga product Tani Oluwaseyi, Toronto product Ali Ahmed and Langley, B.C., product Joel Waterman practise at Team Canada’s Friday camp.

World Cup a mosaic of the human experience

Jerrad Peters 5 minute read Preview

World Cup a mosaic of the human experience

Jerrad Peters 5 minute read Friday, Jun. 26, 2026

On June 13, the third day of the ongoing World Cup, Morocco played more than a quarter of its Group C match against Brazil without a single Moroccan-born footballer on the pitch.

Instead, the starting eleven deployed by manager Mohamed Ouahbi between the 64th and 89th minutes included players from Belgium, France, Spain, the Netherlands and Canada. (Goalkeeper Yassine Bounou was born in Montreal.) Ouahbi, himself, hails from metropolitan Brussels.

According to the BBC, nearly 25 per cent of the players at this tournament were born in countries other than the ones they’re representing.

One of the more prominent examples of this experience is Luca Zidane.

Read

Friday, Jun. 26, 2026

Sports

Cassidy Dankochik / THE CARILLON FILES
Regina Pats forward Zach Lansard is ranked 70th on the NHL Central Scouting’s list of the top North American skaters.

All signs point to Ste. Anne’s Lansard being selected in second round of NHL draft

Cassidy Dankochik 6 minute read Preview

All signs point to Ste. Anne’s Lansard being selected in second round of NHL draft

Cassidy Dankochik 6 minute read Thursday, Jun. 25, 2026

A dream years in the making could come true Saturday, as Zach Lansard appears on pace to be selected during the 2026 NHL entry draft.

The Ste. Anne-born forward plays with the Regina Pats in the Western Hockey League. He had 56 points in 68 regular season games and even helped Regina steal a game in the playoffs against a heavily favoured Medicine Hat team. The Pats were eliminated April 4, leaving a tough wait for Lansard and his family between the end of the season and this week’s NHL draft.

“Obviously, I’m really excited,” Lansard told The Carillon during a phone interview a week before the draft.

“I feel like I had a very successful year this year, and it’s looking good for me to get my name called. These last few months have been a long wait but it’s a very exciting pressure to have.”

Read

Thursday, Jun. 25, 2026

Soccer

CARRIE SERWETNYK PHOTO
Canadian superfans Les Voyageurs make their way to BC Place with a massive “Allez les Rouges” on Wednesday for the Canada-Switzerland match.

Despite loss, Canada continues to make historic firsts

Carrie Serwetnyk 5 minute read Preview

Despite loss, Canada continues to make historic firsts

Carrie Serwetnyk 5 minute read Wednesday, Jun. 24, 2026

The question coming into the Canada-Switzerland game was: is Team Canada’s success in this year’s tournament a fluke?

It kept echoing through my mind.

The team achieved its first World Cup point with a tie against Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Then came a resounding and historic first win, the 6-0 victory against 56th-ranked Qatar — still the only host team in World Cup history to not win a game. And Maxime Crépeau gave the team its first shutout.

Read

Wednesday, Jun. 24, 2026

Opinion

Darryl Dyck / The Canadian Press
Canada manager Jesse Marsch sits on the sideline during the first half of the Canada-Switzerland match on Wednesday. A change of field formation for Canada would go a long way in Canada’s bid to continue to the Round of 16 and beyond.

Push for Canada came too late: Shame if country’s historic bid died on hill of principle

Jerrad Peters 5 minute read Preview

Push for Canada came too late: Shame if country’s historic bid died on hill of principle

Jerrad Peters 5 minute read Wednesday, Jun. 24, 2026

This is already a historic World Cup for Canada’s men’s national soccer team.

First point? Check. First win? Check. First progression to the knockout rounds? Check. All of it on home soil, no less.

And yet, for all that, it also risks being a big disappointment. It can be both things at once.

To say that Wednesday’s 2-1 loss to Switzerland complicated the Canadian campaign would be an understatement. A win or draw in Vancouver would have secured top spot in Group B and a Round of 32 match — as well as a prospective Round of 16 encounter — in the same city.

Read

Wednesday, Jun. 24, 2026