SCHEDULE FOR THURSDAY, DECEMBER 23
National Football League–Week 16 of the season starts:
San Francisco 49ers at Tennessee Titans—7:20 p.m.
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World Junior Hockey Championship—5 pre-tournament games:
Canada vs Russia—6 p.m. at Edmonton
Finland vs United States—1 p.m. at Edmonton
Slovakia vs Germany—3 p.m. at Red Deer
Czechia vs Switzerland—6 p.m. at Red Deer
Austria vs Sweden—8 p.m. at Red Deer
(The tournament-proper opens Sunday in both Edmonton and Red Deer. Canada’s first game will be against Czechia on Sunday at 6 p.m. at Edmonton.)
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National Hockey League—all 15 games postponed due to COVID-19 pause:
St. Louis Blues at Toronto Maple Leafs
Carolina Hurricanes at Ottawa Senators
Montreal Canadiens at New Jersey Devils
Seattle Kraken at Calgary Flames
Anaheim Ducks at Vancouver Canucks
Edmonton Oilers at San Jose Sharks
Colorado Avalanche at Boston Bruins
Philadelphia Flyers at Pittsburgh Penguins
Buffalo Sabres at Columbus Blue Jackets
Nashville Predators at Florida Panthers
Washington Capitals at New York Islanders
Detroit Red Wings at Minnesota Wild
Dallas Stars at Chicago Blackhawks
Tampa Bay Lightning at Arizona Coyotes
Los Angeles Kings at Vegas Golden Knights
(League play will resume no earlier than Monday.)
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The Western Hockey League is idle until Monday when there are five games scheduled, including the Saskatoon Blades visiting the Prince Albert Raiders. First face-off is 7 p.m. at the Art Hauser Centre. CJWW’s broadcast begins at 6:30 p.m. with the Pre-Game Show and the play-by-play at 7 p.m. The Bridge City Bunch have 15 wins, 13 losses, 1 extra time loss for 31 points…tied for 5th place in the Eastern Conference. P-A has 12 wins, 14 losses, 2 extra time losses for 26 points…tied for 8th place in the East. The Blades’ next home game is Tuesday, December 28th against the Red Deer Rebels. Game time is 7 p.m. at SaskTel Centre.
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The National Lacrosse League is off until Thursday, December 30th when Halifax visits Calgary. The Saskatchewan Rush are idle until Friday, December 31st when they host the San Diego Seals. Game time is 8:30 p.m. at SaskTel Centre. The Rush have 1 win, 2 losses…tied for 4th place in the West Division. San Diego has 2 wins, 1 loss…tied for 1st place in the West.
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National Basketball Association–12 games:
New Orleans Pelicans at Orlando Magic—6 p.m.
Houston Rockets at Indiana Pacers—6 p.m.
Atlanta Hawks at Philadelphia 76ers—6 p.m.
Detroit Pistons at Miami Heat—6:30 p.m.
Washington Wizards at New York Knicks—6:30 p.m.
Milwaukee Bucks at Dallas Mavericks—7:30 p.m.
Minnesota Timberwolves at Utah Jazz—8 p.m.
Oklahoma City Thunder at Phoenix Suns—8 p.m.
Charlotte Hornets at Denver Nuggets—8 p.m.
Memphis Grizzlies at Golden State Warriors—9 p.m.
San Antonio Spurs at Los Angeles Lakers—9:30 p.m.
Brooklyn Nets at Portland Trailblazers—postponed, COVID-19
(The Toronto Raptors are off until Sunday when they visit the Cleveland Cavaliers at 5 p.m.)
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