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Vasek Pospisil advances to Sofia Open final – TSN

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SOFIA, Bulgaria — Vancouver’s Vasek Pospisil advanced to the final of the Sofia Open indoor hardcourt tennis tournament with a 6-7 (6), 6-2, 6-0 win over France’s Richard Gasquet on Friday.

Pospisil, ranked 74th in the world, won the last 11 games of a match that took around one hour 51 minutes to complete.

“I had some chances in the first set and was holding serve relatively comfortably so I was disappointed to lose that set and just felt like I was lacking a little bit of energy,” Pospisil said. “I just raised the intensity in the second set. Early in the second set I tried to pump myself up and as soon as I got the break I felt like his energy dropped and I stayed relatively consistent and aggressive.”

The Canadian fired 18 aces past Gasquet as he improved to 4-2 lifetime against the world No. 49.

Pospisil won 77 per cent of service points, compared to 57 per cent for Gasquet. Pospisil saved the only break point he faced while breaking Gasquet five times on seven opportunities.

Pospisil will face 19-year-old Jannik Sinner of Italy on Saturday in the final of the ATP 250 event, with the winner claiming his first ATP Tour title.

“Jannik is a super talented young guy and it’s going to be a really tight match,” said Pospisil, who fell in the final round of qualifying at the Paris Masters event last week. “I’m going to go out there and go for the win and play aggressive and try and take my chances. I’m a little bit pleasantly surprised how I finished the year with this tournament.”

It will be the third career Tour final appearance for the 30-year-old Pospisil, and the second this year. He also advanced to the final of an indoor hardcourt tournament in Montpelier, France, in February.

“It will definitely help me,” Pospisil said of the experience. “I played at a good level and just came up against tough opponent [Gael Monfils] and I think maybe this time around I’ll be maybe a little bit more relaxed.”

Sinner, the world No. 44, advanced with a 6-3, 7-5 win over fifth-seed Adrian Mannarino of France.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 13, 2020.

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Red Wings sign Moritz Seider to 7-year deal worth nearly $60M

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DETROIT (AP) — The Detroit Red Wings made another investment this week in a young standout, signing Moritz Seider to a seven-year contract worth nearly $60 million.

The Red Wings announced the move with the 23-year-old German defenseman on Thursday, three days after keeping 22-year-old forward Lucas Raymond with a $64.6 million, eight-year deal.

Detroit drafted Seider with the No. 6 pick overall eight years ago and he has proven to be a great pick. He has 134 career points, the most by a defenseman drafted in 2019.

He was the NHL’s only player to have at least 200 hits and block 200-plus shots last season, when he scored a career-high nine goals and had 42 points for the second straight year.

Seider won the Calder Trophy as the league’s top rookie in 2022 after he had a career-high 50 points.

Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman is banking on Seider, whose contract will count $8.55 million annually against the cap, and Raymond to turn a rebuilding team into a winner.

Detroit has failed to make the playoffs in eight straight seasons, the longest postseason drought in franchise history.

The Red Wings, who won four Stanley Cups from 1997 to 2008, have been reeling since their run of 25 straight postseasons ended in 2016.

Detroit was 41-32-9 last season and finished with a winning record for the first time since its last playoff appearance.

Yzerman re-signed Patrick Kane last summer and signed some free agents, including Vladimir Tarasenko to a two-year contract worth $9.5 million after he helped the Florida Panthers hoist the Cup.

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Vancouver Canucks star goalie Thatcher Demko working through rare muscle injury

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PENTICTON, B.C. – Vancouver Canucks goalie Thatcher Demko says he’s been working his way back from a rare lower-body muscle injury since being sidelined in last season’s playoffs.

The 28-year-old all star says the rehabilitation process has been frustrating, but he has made good progress in recent weeks and is confident he’ll be able to return to playing.

He says he and his medical team have spent the last few months talking to specialists around the world, and have not found a single other hockey player who has dealt with the same injury.

Demko missed several weeks of the last season with a knee ailment and played just one game in Vancouver’s playoff run last spring before going down with the current injury.

He was not on the ice with his teammates as the Canucks started training camp in Penticton, B.C., on Thursday, but skated on his own before the sessions began.

Demko posted a 35-14-2 record with a .918 percentage, a 2.45 goals-against average and five shutouts for Vancouver last season.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.

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Arch Manning to get first start for No. 1 Texas as Ewers continues recovery from abdomen strain

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AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — No. 1 Texas will start Arch Manning at quarterback Saturday against Louisiana-Monroe while regular starter Quinn Ewers continues to recover from a strained muscle in his abdomen, coach Steve Sarkisian said Thursday.

It will be the first career start for Manning, a second year freshman. He relieved Ewers in the second quarter last week against UTSA, and passed for four touchdowns and ran for another in a 56-7 Texas victory.

Manning is the son of Cooper Manning, the grandson of former NFL quarterback Archie Manning, and the nephew of Super Bowl-winning QBs Peyton and Eli Manning.

Ewers missed several games over the previous two seasons with shoulder and sternum injuries.

The Longhorns are No. 1 for the first time since 2008 and Saturday’s matchup with the Warhawks is Texas’ last game before the program starts its first SEC schedule against Mississippi State on Sept. 28.

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