GRETZKY `HONOURED' HE HAD COLE AS A FRIEND
Tributes continue to pour in for Bob Cole as his family has confirmed a funeral will be held for the legendary broadcaster Friday in St. John's, N.L.
Wayne Gretzky says it was Cole's passion for the game of hockey that made him a great one. He shared his memories of Cole on Hockey Night in Canada, recalling how much respect the players had for the broadcaster.
Cole died last week in St. John's at the age of 90.
“He was genuinely a passionate guy about the game of hockey and to me, that's what separates great broadcasters and great athletes from the average people,” Gretzky said. “I feel honoured to say I was his friend, and we're going to miss him dearly.”
Montreal's Felix Auger-aliassime advanced to the fourth round of the Madrid Open tennis tournament Monday in a walkover after Czech opponent Jakub Mensik retired. Auger-aliassime was up 6-1, 1-0 through a brisk 35 minutes when Mensik conceded after being broken on the first game of the second set.
Connor Hellebuyck's special regular season has earned him a shot at another Vezina Trophy.
On Monday, the Winnipeg Jets netminder was named as one of three finalists and is considered the front-runner to win the award given annually to the NHL'S top goaltender.
The 30-year-old, who won the Vezina in 2020 and was previously nominated in 2018 and 2023, picked up 37 wins in the 2023-24 season and posted a 2.39 goals-against average, .921 save percentage and five shutouts.
He has already won the William Jennings Trophy as the Jets allowed the fewest goals (199) of all 32 teams in the NHL this season.
Hellebuyck joins Florida Panthers goalie Sergei Bobrovsky and Thatcher Demko of the Vancouver Canucks as Vezina finalists.
The Seattle Kraken fired coach Dave Hakstol on Monday after the third-year franchise took a significant step back following a playoff appearance in its second season. Hakstol was a finalist for the Jack Adams Award as coach of the year last season. The Kraken went 34-35-13 this year.
Hakstol's record during his three seasons in charge was 107-112-27.
Previously suspended receiver Quintez Cephus is back in the NFL after signing a one-year contract with the Buffalo Bills on Monday. Cephus was suspended indefinitely last April for betting on NFL games in 2022.
Matt Ryan, who retired last week after 15 years in the NFL, will join CBS Sports as a studio analyst on The NFL Today, while Phil Simms and Boomer Esiason are leaving the show, the network announced Monday. Ryan will join James Brown, Nate Burleson, Bill Cowher and JJ Watt.
The contracts of Simms and Esiason expired after the Super Bowl.