WEDNESDAY EYE-OPENER

The Vancouver Canucks needed overtime — but not much of it — to get past the Winnipeg Jets. Luca Sbisa scored just 36 seconds into the extra period to lift Vancouver to a 3-2 win over the Jets. Alexandre Burrows and Ronalds Kenins scored in regulation for the Canucks while Bryan Little and Blake Wheeler had Winnipeg’s goals.

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Another loss for the Toronto Maple Leafs. Mike Fisher had a goal and two assists and Colin Wilson scored the tiebreaker in the third period as the Nashville Predators edged Toronto 4-3. That’s 10 straight losses for the Leafs, who are 0-9-and-1 in that span. James Reimer made 24 saves in the losing effort.

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Brian Gionta must have felt right at home in his old stomping grounds. The former Habs captain scored the eventual winning goal to push the Buffalo Sabres to a 3-2 victory over the Canadiens in Montreal. Meanwhile, in New Jersey, Mike Camalleri scored the winner as the Devils edged Ottawa 2-1.

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New England Patriots special teams coach Scott O’Brien is retiring after 24 seasons in the NFL. Joe Judge will replace him. He had been O’Brien’s assistant since 2012. The Patriots made the announcement two days after they beat the Seattle Seahawks 28-24 in the Super Bowl.

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Orioles pitcher Miguel Gonzalez has avoided a salary arbitration hearing by agreeing to a one-year contract worth 3.275 million US dollars. The 30-year-old right-hander had asked for 3.95 million and had been offered 2.5 million when Baltimore exchanged proposed arbitration salaries with him last month.

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Major League Baseball has eliminated its requirement that Cuban players obtain a license from the US government before they are eligible to sign with big league teams. MLB Executive Vice-President Dan Halem sent a memorandum to teams saying the new policy was warranted following changes made last month by the U-S government.

(CP)