Report Says Gretzky Is Set to Be Next Phoenix Coach

Wayne Gretzky, the NHL’s all-time leading scorer, will be the new coach of the Phoenix Coyotes, the Arizona Republic reported on its website Sunday.

Gretzky, the team’s managing partner, is expected to be introduced as coach today, multiple NHL sources told the paper. ESPN.com confirmed the report later Sunday.

The Coyotes scheduled a news conference for this afternoon. Team spokesman Rick Braunstein said a “major announcement” was planned.

There had been speculation for several months that Gretzky would move from the Coyote front office to their bench. But the nine-time MVP had said he would wait until a new collective-bargaining agreement was in place before deciding whether to coach.

The newspaper also reported that former Detroit Red Wing assistant Barry Smith would be one of Gretzky’s assistants.

Former Coyote player Rick Tocchet or interim Coach Rick Bowness will be Gretzky’s other assistant, according to the report.

Gretzky, who is in the final year of a five-year contract with the club, is a longtime friend of Coyote General Manager Mike Barnett. Barnett said the day after the new NHL collective-bargaining agreement was reached last month that Gretzky was very interested in the position.

Barnett, Gretzky’s former agent, said the decision would rest with the hockey great and his family, who live in Los Angeles.

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Ray Whitney signed a two-year contract with Carolina, giving the Hurricanes a two-time All-Star who has topped 60 points in five of his last seven seasons.

The left wing, 33, is joining his sixth NHL team. He has scored more than 20 goals in a season five times, setting a career high with 33 in 1997-98 with the Edmonton Oilers and Florida Panthers. Whitney was chosen for the All-Star game in 2000 and 2003.

Whitney had 14 goals and 29 assists for Detroit in 2003-04. He played the two previous seasons with the Columbus Blue Jackets, totaling 45 goals and 92 assists in 148 games. He had 71 points (29 goals, 42 assists) in 1999-2000 with Florida.

Tennis

Top-seeded Andy Roddick defeated James Blake, 7-5, 6-3, to win the Legg Mason Tennis Classic championship in Washington.

Roddick, who also won in Washington in 2001, took advantage of costly errors by Blake in the clinching game of the first set, then rode the momentum to his fourth title of the year.

Roddick took a 6-5 lead with his powerful service game, then clinched the set when the unseeded American first hit a volley wide right, then was long on an overhead. In the second set, Roddick broke serve to take a 5-3 advantage, then recorded three of his 18 aces, one clocked at 144 mph, to take the title.

Earlier Sunday, twin brothers Bob and Mike Bryan of Camarillo defeated Wayne Black and Kevin Ullyet, 6-4, 6-2, to win the doubles championship.

Swimming

Kate Ziegler led all the way in winning the 1,500-meter freestyle by 10 1/2 seconds on the last night of the U.S. Summer Nationals in Irvine.

Ziegler, from Great Falls, Va., finished the mile in 16 minutes 14.52 seconds for her second title of the week. She won the 800 free and was second in the 400 free, earning the women’s high-point trophy.

The men’s mile came down to a tight finish, with Chip Peterson of Pine Knoll Shores, N.C., holding off Robert Margalis of St. Petersburg, Fla., by just over a half-second.

Ben Wildman-Tobriner of San Francisco upset world champion Roland Schoeman of South Africa to win the men’s 50 free.

Schoeman finished in 22.15. Earlier, he won the 100 free and 100 butterfly titles. He tied with Klete Keller of Phoenix for the men’s high-point trophy.

Amanda Weir of Lawrenceville, Ga., won the women’s 50 free in 25.45. She was 10th in the event at the world championships last month in Montreal.

In the 200 individual medley, Ariana Kukors of Auburn, Wash., won the women’s race in 2:14.57 and Timothy Liebhold of the University of Wisconsin took the men’s title in 2:01.75.

Cycling

Tour de France runner-up Ivan Basso of Italy won the Tour of Denmark, winning four of the race’s six stages.

Germany’s Andre Greipel took the final stage, which finished in Copenhagen.

Fifteen teams and 120 riders competed in the 527-mile race through Denmark.

Overall, Basso finished ahead of CSC teammate Kurt-Asle Arvesen and Rory Sutherland of Australia. Arvesen won last year’s race.

Basso was second in last month’s Tour de France, which Lance Armstrong won for the seventh straight year before retiring.

Miscellany

Indonesia’s Chris John kept his World Boxing Assn. featherweight crown, stopping Tommy Browne in the 10th round at Sydney and sending the Australian to his second loss in a title bout this year.

John improved his record to 36-0-1, with 20 knockouts. Browne fell to 18-4-1. He dropped a unanimous decision in January to South Korea’s Chi In-jin, the World Boxing Council featherweight champion.

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The United States men stunned world champion Brazil to win the America’s Cup of volleyball, 3-2, in five sets.

The U.S. team grabbed an early lead and hung on to defeat Brazil, 27-25, 26-24, 21-25, 20-25, 15-11, in the southern Brazilian city of Sao Leopoldo.