National Sports

TORONTO — A rink rat often found on the practice ice long after his teammates have hit the showers, Jason Spezza has always joked he'd play hockey for free. With all the ticket requests about to come his way, he might just have to next season.

EDMONTON — Ken Holland was unable to make a big splash in his first foray into free agency as the new general manager of the Edmonton Oilers, but that doesn't mean he wasn't busy.

WIMBLEDON, England — Coco Gauff grew up admiring the Williams sisters. Picked up a tennis racket as a little girl because of them. And on Monday at Wimbledon, still just 15, Gauff beat one of them.

MONTREAL — Now all Montreal Canadiens general manager Marc Bergevin can do is wait.

VANCOUVER — For months, Vancouver Canucks general manager Jim Benning has stressed the need for his club to beef up their blue line over the off-season. He did just that on Monday, adding a trio of defencemen in free agency.

CALGARY — Players in the fold were more of a priority for the Calgary Flames than the open market when NHL free agency opened Monday.

TORONTO — Charlie Montoyo always believed his hitters were better than what they have shown for much of the season. "It started with (Lourdes) Gurriel.

When Canada captured its first global basketball title at the FIBA under-19 Men's World Cup two years ago, it changed the tone for perhaps every Canadian squad playing on the sport's biggest stage.

TORONTO — The Ottawa Senators and Toronto Maple Leafs swapped underperforming defencemen a couple of hours before NHL free agency opened Monday.

OTTAWA — Pierre Dorion added the veteran leadership he was looking for on the opening day of free agency. The Ottawa Senators general manager signed veteran defenceman Ron Hainsey to a one-year deal worth US$3.