Toronto

Toronto

As always, these games are difficult to evaluate; played at the beginning of the hockey schedule, it's a group of young players who have never played together facing opposition who have also never played together, leading to some chaos and a lack of structure. With that caveat out of the way, here are some of my impressions from the weekend:

A motorcyclist is dead after a two-vehicle crash Sunday morning at an Oakville intersection, Halton Police said. The incident happened at around 9 a.m. at Trafalgar and Burnhamthorpe Rd, said police spokesperson Ryan Anderson in an email. A motorcyclist was pronounced dead at the scene, Anderson said. Police couldn't confirm the age and gender of the motorcyclist. The driver of the second vehicle was taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

Bo Bichette suffered a knee sprain on Saturday and is on the 10-day injury list retroactive to September 7. This injury comes as the Toronto Blue Jays fight to hold off the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox in the AL East with two weeks left in the season. Bichette has been crucial to the team's success in a contract year. Bichette's statistics (.311 batting average, .357 on-base percentage, 94 runs batted in, and 18 home runs) will be hard to replicate.

Bonnie Crombie's political future will be in the hands of Ontario Liberals this weekend, as she faces a mandatory leadership review to determine if she'll stay on as head of the provincial party. The vote comes six months after the Liberals placed third in seat count in last February's snap election and triggered internal frustration at the way Crombie's team ran the party's campaign.

The association representing Ontario's municipalities is urging Premier Doug Ford to reconsider his plan to get rid of automated speed cameras, saying it will put pedestrians at risk. Ford reacted to news earlier this week that 17 automated speed cameras were cut down in Toronto over two nights, saying if municipalities don't ditch them, he will. The premier called the cameras a "cash grab," and suggested that "big huge signs" and "big flashing lights" would more effectively deter speeding.

According to Chris Johnston on a recent episode of his podcast, there remains some speculation that the Leafs are open to the idea of trading Robertson. And furthermore, Johnston suggests that during this training camp period, as teams are figuring out their final roster and maybe realizing they need a player like Robertson, for him to then be moved.

When it comes to facing lefties, Borucki has been shutting them down at an incredible clip, making him a valuable late-inning option whenever the matchup calls for it. Although he has pitched to a staggering 4.96 ERA this season, between the Pirates and the Jays, not much of it has come off left-handed hitters. Can Borucki be a guy the Blue Jays rely on in late-inning options.

He is unquestionably a very strong defender, and he maintained his energy and tenacity in a lost season where he was tasked with a lot of on-ball responsibilities on offense. He is an elite rebounder, providing extra possessions on the offensive glass and closing out possessions on the other side (73rd & 94th percentile). He's a talented at rim finisher, especially when he's able to attack off the catch rather than his own dribble.

walked away from the [negotiation] table

Some Jays fans could jump in and quickly argue that big offseason free agent signing Anthony Santander hasn't lived up to his contract yet. After all, the former All-Star outfielder had struggled mightily in his first year with the club, batting a pitiful .179 and a .577 OPS, with just 14 runs scored, five doubles, six home runs and 18 RBIS over 50 games played.

Schuyler is suing the producers of Degrassi: Whatever It Takes, alleging that "defamatory statements and innuendo" in the film lead viewers to believe she created an "empire" that profited at the expense of the show's young actors. The lawsuit was filed on Monday in Ontario. None of the allegations have been tested in court.

A Farm Boy location in the Yonge-Eglinton area has been forced to temporarily close after failing a DineSafe inspection. According to the City of Toronto, two of the infractions include permitting rodents and failing to protect food from contamination. The Farm Boy location near Yonge Street and Eglinton Avenue has closed temporarily after failing an inspection conducted through the city's DineSafe program. The inspection found two "crucial" and other less severe infractions at the grocery store, including a failure to protect food from contamination and that the premise was maintained in a "manner permitting health hazards," specifically rodents.

Toronto police are asking for the public's help finding an 81-year-old man with dementia who has been missing since last Saturday. Allen was last seen on Sept. 6 at around 3 p.m. near Bloor Street West and High Park Avenue, police said a news release. He's described as five-feet-four-inches tall with a medium build and white hair that is balding. He was last seen wearing a thick grey sweater, grey or black pants and white Nike shoes with a cream coloured Nike swoosh

"I have been clear that the governance changes being considered are regarding the role of elected school board trustees," he wrote Monday in a statement.

A WestJet plane operating from Toronto made a "hard landing" at an airport in the Caribbean country of St. Maarten, the airline said on Sunday. The airline said all passengers and crew were evacuated from WestJet flight 2276 after the plane arrived at Princess Juliana International Airport. The landing activated the plane's slides and emergency responders deployed foam as a precaution. WestJet said there were no reported injuries.

While we don't particularly enjoy thinking about the Leafs parting ways with someone who has been a joy to watch hit unsuspecting forwards as hard as possible, it might just come down to a numbers game. As The Athletic's James Mirtle wrote in a recent mailbag, the Leafs are looking for more of a puck-moving presence on the blue line and that should then result in them moving on from one of the more defensively minded defensemen.

There's no questioning about his defense, as the outfielder has once again put up some elite numbers in the field to date. Varsho has produced eight Defensive Runs Saved while committing only one error across 110 chances for a stellar .991 fielding percentage while manning the toughest position in the outfield. Of course, he makes any spectacular play look easy like this.