Off the wire

LITTLE ROCK — HOCKEY

NHL, union to talk today

The NHL and the players’ association are ready to get back to the bargaining table. There were no formal negotiations Sunday, but all signs pointed to talks today in an effort to end the lockout and save the season. “The plan is for the sides to meet [today],” the union said in a statement. If talks take place they would be the first negotiations since the sides met with a federal mediator Dec. 13. The league and the union had informational discussions - by conference call and in meetings - with staff members that lasted much of Saturday and concluded Sunday. Those talks were spurred by the nearly 300-page contract proposal the NHL presented to the union Thursday.All games through Jan. 14 have been canceled, claiming more than 50 percent of the original schedule. The NHL wants to reach a deal by Jan. 11 and open the season Jan. 19, with a 48-game schedule. Bargaining sessions without a mediator haven’t been held since Dec. 6, when talks abruptly ended after the players’ association made a counter proposal to the league’s previous offer. The league said that offer was contingent on the union accepting three elements unconditionally and without further bargaining. The NHL then pulled all existing offers off the table. Two days of sessions with mediators the following week ended without progress. A person familiar with key points of the offer told The Associated Press that the league proposed raising the limit of individual free-agent contracts to six years from five - seven years if a team re-signs its own player; raising the salary variance from one year to another to 10 percent, up from 5 percent; and one compliance buyout for the 2013-2014 season that wouldn’t count toward a team’s salary cap but would be included in the overall players’ share of income. The NHL maintained the deferred payment amount of $300 million it offered in its previous proposal, an increase from an earlier offer of $211 million. The initial $300 million offer was pulled after negotiations broke off this month. The latest proposal is for 10 years, running through the 2021-2022 season, with both sides having the right to opt out after eight years.

Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Ryan Strome scored in the first period, and Canada beat the United States 2-1 to advance to the next round at the junior ice hockey world championships in Ufa, Russia. Jacob Trouba scored for the U.S. The Americans need to beat Slovakia today in Group B to move on. Canada faces Russia today to determine which team gets a bye into the semifinals. Nugent-Hopkins, 19, was the first pick of the 2011 NHL draft by Edmonton and had 52 points in 62 games for the Oilers last season. Slovakia stayed alive by beating Germany 2-1 on an overtime power-play goal by Peter Ceresnak. In Group A, Finland beat Switzerland 5-4 on a shootout goal by Markus Granlund, who also scored twice in regulation. The Czech Republic defeated Latvia 4-2 to advance to the next round. Martin Frk scored twice.

COLLEGES Tulsa AD search on hold

The University of Tulsa’s president said he will probably wait until the NCAA completes its investigation of fired athletic director Ross Parmley before choosing Parmley’s replacement. School President Steadman Upham said the university is prepared to be without an AD while the NCAA investigation continues, even if it goes on for several months, the Tulsa World reported Sunday. “Quite honestly, we’re not in a hurry to move on the AD position,” Upham said Saturday after a Liberty Bowl luncheon in Memphis. “Until the NCAA issues its opinion, and makes a determination on the university’s status, I think we’re probably in a little bit of a holding pattern. “I want to make sure that when we go out and search for a new AD - if we go out and search for a new AD - that the conditions are known and the playing field is known.” Executive vice president Kevan Buck has been serving as the school’s athletic director on an interim basis since Parmley was suspended last month, after unsealed court documents identified Parmley as an “admitted gambler.” Parmley was fired on Dec. 4, with Upham saying Parmley had lied to him in a 2011 conversation when he was asked if he’d ever gambled on college or professional sports. Parmley does not face any criminal charges. Tulsa has said it is cooperating with the NCAA in its investigation. “I do not believe there will be a significant issue with the university in this,” Upham said. “This was an individual action [by Parmley], and it was very unfortunate. But you never know. You want to wait it through. We’ll let the investigation takes its course. I have every confidence in the NCAA and their process.” Upham said he and Buck are “covering the bases” of what an AD would usually handle,and they have been receiving help. He said football coach Bill Blankenship has agreed to the terms of a new contract, although Blankenship said Sunday that “we haven’t finalized anything.” TENNIS

Williams opens with victory

Serena Williams defeated fellow American Varvara Lepchenko 6-2, 6-1 in the first round of the Brisbane International on Sunday in Australia, showing glimpses of the game that made her the most dominant player on the women’s tennis tour in 2012. After saving five break points as she adjusted to a strong breeze in the first game, Williams raced to a 4-0 lead and was rarely troubled by the 21st-ranked Lepchenko. Williams won 31 of her 32 matches in the second half of 2012, including titles at Wimbledon, the Olympics, the U.S. Open and the WTA Championships. She is coming off minor surgery on her big toes, which forced her to withdraw from an exhibition in Thailand.

Venus Williams and John Isner led the United States to a 2-1 victory over South Africa at the Hopman Cup mixed team competition Sunday in Perth, Australia. Williams rallied to defeat 60th-ranked Chanelle Scheepers 4-6, 6-2, 6-3. Kevin Anderson beat Isner 7-6 (0), 7-6 (5), making mixed doubles the deciding point. Williams and Isner beat the South Africans 6-3, 6-2 to clinch victory. Williams took some time to settle in against an opponent who rallied well and hit the ball deep. Scheepers broke Williams at love to serve for the first set. But after that, the seven-time Grand Slam champion looked increasingly comfortable and began to play more aggressively. Williams clinched the second set when Scheepers double faulted. She then won the first four games of the third.

FOOTBALL Moore to enter draft

Texas A&M defensive end Damontre Moore will forego his senior season to enter the NFL draft. Moore led the Aggies in tackles (80), sacks (12 1/2) and tackles for losses (20) this season. Moore, a first-team All-SEC pick, will finish his Texas A&M career Friday when the Aggies face Oklahoma in the Cotton Bowl.

GOLF Jimenez breaks leg

Spanish golfer Miguel Angel Jimenez has broken his right shinbone and will be sidelined for up to five months after breaking his leg while skiing. The 48-year-old fell inSpain’s Sierra Nevada mountain region Saturday and had an operation at the hospital in nearby Malaga, the European Tour said on its website. Jimenez was a vice captain on Europe’s Ryder Cup-winning team in September. In November, the 48-year-old Jimenez became the oldest European Tour winner by capturing his third Hong Kong Open title. He has 19 career European Tour titles. “I was going down a hill and lost control briefly and when I fell it was very sore,” Jimenez told the Tour’s website. “I knew immediately I had broken something.”