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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Newsmakers

From Staff And Wire Reports

Signed The Ottawa Senators are rewarding goalie Brian Elliott for his fine rookie season by giving him a two-year contract. The deal will pay Elliott $800,000 next season and $900,000 in the 2010-11 campaign. Elliott, 24, played in 31 games with Ottawa last season, going 16-8-3 with a 2.77 goals-against- average and a .902 save percentage.

Resigns Vancouver Canucks president and chief executive officer Chris Zimmerman is stepping down because of family reasons, the team said. General manager Mike Gillis will also take on the role of president.

Decline The New York Rangers are making young forward Nikolai Zherdev an unrestricted free agent after walking away from the $3.9 million arbitration award he was given. The Rangers had until Tuesday to accept the figure for next season or let him go. Zherdev reportedly sought $4.5 million in arbitration after the Rangers made a $3.25 million qualifying offer. An arbitrator awarded Zherdev $3.9 million on Sunday.

Agree Soccer star Xabi Alonso is on the verge of becoming the latest big-money addition to Real Madrid. Liverpool reached an agreement to sell the 27-year-old midfielder to the Spanish power, subject to a physical. Though neither club disclosed financial details, Spanish media reported a transfer fee of $43.2 million had been agreed to. That would raise Madrid’s offseason spending to $350 million for six players.

Returns Swimmer Jessica Hardy’s suspension is over, and she is back in competition for the first time since her Olympic dream shattered a year ago. The former world record holder in the 100 breaststroke and four-time NCAA champion will compete in the 100 freestyle today in the U.S. Open championships at Federal Way, Wash. The 22-year-old Hardy had to swim in a Junior Olympics meet with 15-year-old racers last weekend to qualify. Hardy tested positive for a banned supplement in a disputed drug test weeks before she was to swim in the Beijing Olympics.

Returning Florida receiver Riley Cooper, who has agreed to play baseball for the Texas Rangers, is returning for his senior season of football. “He will be counted on heavily to be one of our go-to receivers,” coach Urban Meyer said.