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The Victoria Royals will attempt to shake off the rust from the Christmas break and ring out 2012 with a pair of victories over the visiting Prince George Cougars this weekend.

NEW YORK, N.Y. - Free agent slugger Hideki Matsui retired Thursday from professional baseball, saying he is no longer able to perform at the level that made him a star in two countries.

WASHINGTON - The best season in San Jose State history? There's a good case for it, yet it's one nobody could make if the person with the awkward role of interim, on-the-way-out coach hadn't finished the job.

NEW YORK, N.Y. - Avery Johnson was fired Thursday as coach of the Brooklyn Nets, who have struggled recently in their season of new surroundings and elevated expectations.

TORONTO - Little about Christine Sinclair's brilliant performance at the London Olympics came as a surprise to her teammates. But it allowed the rest of the world to finally see the captain they all know so well.

DAVOS, Switzerland - If there were any doubts about sa¹ú¼Ê´«Ã½'s scoring touch at the Spengler Cup, they were emphatically put to rest Thursday. Byron Ritchie scored two second-period goals to lead sa¹ú¼Ê´«Ã½ to a convincing 5-0 win over host HC Davos.

BOSTON - Stephen Drew is moving to Boston to restart what once looked like a promising career. The former first-round draft pick of the Arizona Diamondbacks was derailed by a serious ankle injury in 2011.

UFA, Russia - Malcolm Subban's acrobatics, experience and flair has made him sa¹ú¼Ê´«Ã½'s starting goaltender at the world junior hockey championship for now.

BOSTON - If Joel Hanrahan can do for the Boston Red Sox what he did against them, they should be very happy with their new closer.

A trio with ties to Victoria will attempt to help Team Pacific to its first ever title at the World Under-17 Hockey Challenge, which runs from Saturday to Jan. 4 in Victoriaville and Drummondville, Que.