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Winnipeg Jets defenceman Dylan Samberg (54) can become an unrestricted free agent at the age of 29. (Erin Hooley / The Associated Press files)

Jets, Samberg agree to terms on three-year deal

Ken Wiebe 6 minute read Wednesday, Jul. 30, 2025

On the surface, this looks like the epitome of a compromise.

By avoiding Wednesday’s arbitration hearing in Toronto and the shrapnel it may have included, the Winnipeg Jets and Dylan Samberg found a happy medium, agreeing to terms on a three-year deal that carries an average annual value of US$5.75 million.

With the Jets avoiding a one-year award for Samberg that could have walked him to unrestricted free agency next summer, this should be characterized as an important development.

Since the two sides agreed to a term of less than six-to-eight years, many observers will stop short of saying it’s an undisputed victory for Jets general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff and company and there are plenty of valid reasons for that particular viewpoint.

Manitoba Open

Ehlers bids emotional farewell

Mike McIntyre 6 minute read Preview

Ehlers bids emotional farewell

Mike McIntyre 6 minute read Friday, Jul. 4, 2025

It would appear the breakup between the Winnipeg Jets and Nikolaj Ehlers was an amicable one. Emotional, too.

“Nik phoned me (Thursday), almost in tears,” coach Scott Arniel said on Friday.

“He just felt the biggest thing for him was he needed a change of scenery. It wasn’t based on the city or the hockey team. He felt like he had been here a long time and this was his one chance to make a change.”

That change has come in the form of a six-year contract with the Carolina Hurricanes which will pay Ehlers US $8.5 million per season. It marks the end of a relationship with the Jets that dates back to 2014 when he was selected in the first round, ninth-overall, by the organization.

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Friday, Jul. 4, 2025

KARL DEBLAKER / THE ASSOCIATED PRESS FILES

Nikolaj Ehlers provided plenty of thrills for Jets fans over the years.
KARL DEBLAKER / THE ASSOCIATED PRESS FILES Nikolaj Ehlers provided plenty of thrills for Jets fans over the years.

Encore for Perfetti includes linemate Toews

Mike McIntyre 7 minute read Preview

Encore for Perfetti includes linemate Toews

Mike McIntyre 7 minute read 5:33 PM CDT

As he returned to his hometown in Ontario this summer, Winnipeg Jets forward Cole Perfetti was surprised by how many people wanted to talk to him about the “Manitoba Miracle.”

“They’re all Leafs fans and for them to be asking about that and recognizing that I scored that goal, it was really cool to have that,” Perfetti told the Free Press on Friday, referring to his incredible buzzer-beater last April against the St. Louis Blues that staved off playoff elimination and made headlines across the sports world.

“I guess I didn’t right away recognize how big of a goal it was in terms. You go to the grocery store, you go here or wherever it is and people always… the first thing they say is what a goal. They always say they’ll never forget that for the rest of their lives.”

Perfetti’s name is now etched in local hockey history for a dramatic moment his head coach, Scott Arniel, ranks alongside Paul Henderson’s 1972 classic against the Soviet Union, Bobby Orr’s airborne beauty and Sidney Crosby’s golden-goal overtime winner at the 2010 Olympics.

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5:33 PM CDT

MIKE DEAL / FREE PRESS

‘Manitoba Miracle’ sniper and Winnipeg Jets forward Cole Perfetti has been paired with Jonathan Toews and Gustav Nyquist at training camp.
MIKE DEAL / FREE PRESS ‘Manitoba Miracle’ sniper and Winnipeg Jets forward Cole Perfetti has been paired with Jonathan Toews and Gustav Nyquist at training camp.

Battle of the understudies in the nation’s capital

Jeff Hamilton 7 minute read Preview

Battle of the understudies in the nation’s capital

Jeff Hamilton 7 minute read 5:05 PM CDT

OTTAWA — With only a handful of games remaining in the regular season, both the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and the Ottawa Redblacks are feeling the pressure.

The Bombers are clinging to the third and final playoff spot in the West Division. At 6-7, they’re tied with the B.C. Lions — but own the season-series tiebreaker — and are just two points up on the Edmonton Elks for that final playoff berth.

If that sounds challenging, things are even worse in the nation’s capital.

The Redblacks are in full-on desperation mode, stuck in last place in the East Division with a 4-9 record. If Ottawa has any chance at a playoff spot, it’ll have to go on a serious run and hope some other teams trip up.

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5:05 PM CDT

John Woods / THE CANADIAN PRESS FILES

Winnipeg Blue Bombers backup quarterback Chris Streveler (right) gets the start against the Ottawa Redblacks returning starting pivot — and former fellow Zach Collaros understudy — Dru Brown in the national’s capital Saturday.
John Woods / THE CANADIAN PRESS FILES Winnipeg Blue Bombers backup quarterback Chris Streveler (right) gets the start against the Ottawa Redblacks returning starting pivot — and former fellow Zach Collaros understudy — Dru Brown in the national’s capital Saturday.

Froese heats up as Valour pushes for playoff berth

Joshua Frey-Sam 6 minute read Preview

Froese heats up as Valour pushes for playoff berth

Joshua Frey-Sam 6 minute read 2:59 PM CDT

Teams tend to go as their best players do, and that is proving to be the case for Valour FC.

Winnipeg’s pro soccer club is making a late push up the Canadian Premier League table, and much of their positive results as of late can be attributed to the emergence of homegrown talent Kianz Froese, who has accounted for three assists and a pair of goals in the club’s last two contests, respectively.

Froese, a Cuban-born and Winnipeg-raised attacking midfielder who joined Valour halfway through the season after a year away from pro soccer, suffered a hamstring injury shortly after returning to game action.

The ailment sidelined him for three weeks, but he’s looked like a different player since returning to the field.

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2:59 PM CDT

MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS FILES

Winnipeg product Kianz Froese has racked up two goals and three assists in Valour FC’s last two games as the club pushes for a franchise first post-season berth starting with a road clash against Cavalry on Saturday.
MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS FILES Winnipeg product Kianz Froese has racked up two goals and three assists in Valour FC’s last two games as the club pushes for a franchise first post-season berth starting with a road clash against Cavalry on Saturday.

The ‘Queen,’ ‘Kings’ and ‘Prince’ rule the Downs

George Williams 5 minute read Preview

The ‘Queen,’ ‘Kings’ and ‘Prince’ rule the Downs

George Williams 5 minute read 2:14 PM CDT

The “Queen” is back, the “Kings” aren’t far behind, and the “Prince” is running away with the Gold.

The “Queen,” Burrow Down found her best form again in the $50,000 Manitoba Matron on Tuesday night at the Assiniboia Downs. Three races later, the “Kings” — five-time leading trainer Jerry Gourneau and seven-time leading owner Henry S. Witt Jr. — won the $50,000 Gold Cup. And for the first time in at least 40 years — if ever — jockey Damario Bynoe, the “Prince,” racked up a rare triple-triple, scoring hat tricks on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday that included a long, determined rally aboard the “Queen” to win the Matron.

Burrow Down earned her royalty status locally from a record of 11-1-2 in 16 starts, all stakes, and the six-year-old mare has now won the Manitoba Matron for the third consecutive year. In her four starts this year for trainer Mike Taphorn, she’d finished second in the La Verendrye Stakes, won the Canada Stakes, finished third in the Escape Clause Stakes, and run an uncharacteristically dull fourth in the Miss Imperial Overnight Stakes in her start previous to the Matron.

“We didn’t do anything different with her for the Matron,” said Taphorn, who conditions the horse for owner Gerald Babchishin. “ The only thing we did was make a rider switch.”

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2:14 PM CDT

DANIELLE LANGLOIS PHOTO / ASSINIBOIA DOWNS

Burrow Down won the Manitoba Matron for a third straight year Tuesday at the Assiniboia Downs, while jockey Damario Bynoe scored a hat trick on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday this week.
DANIELLE LANGLOIS PHOTO / ASSINIBOIA DOWNS Burrow Down won the Manitoba Matron for a third straight year Tuesday at the Assiniboia Downs, while jockey Damario Bynoe scored a hat trick on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday this week.

Le Classique a perennial microcosm of country’s state

Jerrad Peters 5 minute read Preview

Le Classique a perennial microcosm of country’s state

Jerrad Peters 5 minute read 1:34 PM CDT

Le Classique is a powder keg at the best of times.

With age-old fissures dividing south from north, Hellenized from Frankish and working-class from cosmopolitan, the football version of Marseille vs. Paris Saint-Germain can ignite from the slightest spark.

Their December 1992 confrontation and its more than 50 fouls is remembered as “la boucherie,” and as recently as 2020 a full-scale brawl produced five ejections, a four-match ban for spitting and allegations of racist and homophobic remarks.

Little wonder travelling fans have been prevented from attending Marseille-PSG matches since 2015 — and that no provision was made for the next one: Sunday at the Vélodrome (1:45 p.m., FuboTV).

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1:34 PM CDT

CHRISTOPHE ENA / THE ASSOCIATED PRESS FILES

Paris Saint-Germain’s Khvicha Kvaratskhelia (centre) challenges for the ball with Marseille’s Geoffrey Kondogbia (right) and Pol Lirola, the last time the two clubs met back in March. Historically, the most infamous Le Classique occurred in December 1992 with more than 50 fouls committed, while, more recently, in 2020, a full-scale brawl broke out.
CHRISTOPHE ENA / THE ASSOCIATED PRESS FILES Paris Saint-Germain’s Khvicha Kvaratskhelia (centre) challenges for the ball with Marseille’s Geoffrey Kondogbia (right) and Pol Lirola, the last time the two clubs met back in March. Historically, the most infamous Le Classique occurred in December 1992 with more than 50 fouls committed, while, more recently, in 2020, a full-scale brawl broke out.

Sports Editor's Picks

Winnipeg Free Press:

Special Coverage: CFL Grey Cup 112

Special Coverage: CFL Grey Cup 112

Mike McIntyre:

Lowry a leader in every sense of word

Winnipeg Jets’ Adam Lowry (17) celebrates as Kyle Connorís (not shown) shot sneaks through the pads of Nashville Predators goaltender Juuse Saros (74) for the winning goal in NHL overtime action in Winnipeg, Thursday, December 15, 2022. THE CANADIAN PRESS/John Woods

Taylor Allen:

Sky’s the limit for ‘Double Gold’ MacDonald

RUTH BONNEVILLE / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS sports - jiu jitsu fighter, Logan MacDonald What: Brazilian jiu jitsu fighter who recently won gold at an event in California. Family owns a BJJ gym in town. Photos of Logan with his dad, MATT MACDONALD, in their home gym. See Taylor's story Dec 13th, 2022

Mike Sawatzky:

Deadline deal pays off for Terriers

Scott Stroh photo Defenceman Hayden Lacquette has become a key cog in Portage’s attack.

Joshua Frey-Sam:

Bob Dyce never considered coaching as a career; now he’s a CFL boss

The way the Dyce roll

Mike Sawatzky:

Brennan makes the most of opportunities

SUPPLIED Lucas Brennan is known for his willing to do the work required to improve and be successful on the ice.

More Sports

First-year OC Hogan asks for patience

Taylor Allen 5 minute read Preview

First-year OC Hogan asks for patience

Taylor Allen 5 minute read Wednesday, Sep. 17, 2025

The offensive co-ordinator can be one of the most criticized roles in all pro sports — especially in a football-crazed market.

The criticism usually comes from the stands, and first-year Blue Bombers OC Jason Hogan has certainly heard an earful from paying customers. But on Tuesday, a subtle shot came from his star running back Brady Oliveira.

“I think maybe us players could be put in some better situations to succeed as well so that it always doesn’t fall on the player,” said Oliveira, when asked for his opinion on the negative reviews surrounding the play of backup quarterback Chris Streveler.

Hogan addressed reporters Wednesday and had no issue with Oliveira’s remark.

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Wednesday, Sep. 17, 2025

Ruth Bonneville / Free Press Files

Winnipeg Blue Bombers offensive co-ordinator Jason Hogan (second right) said Wednesday it’s been humbling for him so far this season — even without running back Brady Oliveira’s recent comments (right) — but overall it’s been “an awesome experience.”
Ruth Bonneville / Free Press Files Winnipeg Blue Bombers offensive co-ordinator Jason Hogan (second right) said Wednesday it’s been humbling for him so far this season — even without running back Brady Oliveira’s recent comments (right) — but overall it’s been “an awesome experience.”

Colliton bringing consistency behind the bench

Joshua Frey-Sam 6 minute read Preview

Colliton bringing consistency behind the bench

Joshua Frey-Sam 6 minute read Wednesday, Sep. 17, 2025

Jordan Colliton has a history of elevating women’s hockey programs to new heights.

She did it with the Mount Royal University Cougars from 2015-22, first as an assistant head coach and then as associate head coach, guiding a team that was new to U Sports competition to perennial national championship contention.

The Blackie, Alta., product did it more recently across the pond, where she helped Leksands IF of the Swedish Women’s Hockey League to its best regular season finish in five years and first playoff win in eight years.

Now Colliton will try again with the University of Manitoba Bisons, a group that is starving for stability and looking to build on last season, which included its first playoff series win in six years.

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Wednesday, Sep. 17, 2025

MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS

The University of Manitoba Bisons new women’s hockey head coach Jordan Colliton at team practice at the Wayne Fleming Arena on Wednesday.
MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS The University of Manitoba Bisons new women’s hockey head coach Jordan Colliton at team practice at the Wayne Fleming Arena on Wednesday.

Wilson focused on being ready

Taylor Allen 5 minute read Preview

Wilson focused on being ready

Taylor Allen 5 minute read Tuesday, Sep. 16, 2025

Terry Wilson is a popular guy in Winnipeg these days.

“I’ve been hearing, man,” said the third-string quarterback for the Blue Bombers after Tuesday’s practice.

With starter Zach Collaros (head injury) out of action and No. 2 arm Chris Streveler struggling Friday in Hamilton against the Tiger-Cats in a 32-21 loss, fans wasted no time taking to social media to say they want to see Wilson in action.

“I mean, it’s outside noise, really. I try to stay away from it,” said Wilson. “It can be a distraction at times, but I’m just trying to stay locked in.”

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Tuesday, Sep. 16, 2025

Heywood Yu / THE CANADIAN PRESS files

At the end of the day, Bombers QB Terry Wilson just wants to win.
Heywood Yu / THE CANADIAN PRESS files At the end of the day, Bombers QB Terry Wilson just wants to win.

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