MINNEAPOLIS - The clock was ticking down toward the deadline for reaching agreement on an extension of his rookie contract, and just like he does on the court for the Minnesota Timberwolves, Ricky Rubio took charge.I was talking with my agents and I told them I really wanted to stay here, Rubio told The Associated Press in a phone interview late Friday night. I told them to make something work. At the end of the day it did happen and Im happy about it.About two hours before the midnight Eastern deadline, Rubio signed a four-year contract extension worth $55 million that includes another $1 million in incentives, bringing an end to a long and sometimes tense negotiation between the flashy Spanish point guard and the team that drafted him in 2009.Rubio averaged 10.1 points, 8.1 assists and 2.3 steals but shot just 37 per cent in his first three seasons. The shooting numbers led some to say the Timberwolves would have been better off waiting to see how Rubio performs this season before extending him an offer given that they would have had the ability to match any offer that he received on the open market next summer.But owner Glen Taylor has long been big on loyalty, and he reached out directly to Rubio earlier this week to make one last push.I want to call Minnesota home for a long time, Rubio said. Thats why I signed the contract. My moms going to get mad at me, but I dont leave home when Im here. This is my second home. I really feel very welcome here.As salaries stand right now, Rubios $13.75 million average annual salary starting next season will be more than high profile point guards like Tony Parker, Steph Curry, Kyle Lowry and Ty Lawson. Rubios representatives targeted Phoenix guard Eric Bledsoes five-year, $70 million deal to eclipse, and ended up coming very close despite not having the leverage that Bledsoe had as a restricted free agent.In Rubio, Taylor and Flip Saunders, the teams president of basketball operations, head coach and minority owner, see a dynamic 24-year-old point guard who is only starting to scratch the surface of his potential.Rubio made an immediate impact as a rookie on a long-suffering team, helping them climb to the eighth spot in the Western Conference playoff picture in early March before he tore two ligaments in his left knee in a game against the Lakers.He played all 82 games last season and said he feels as healthy this year has he has been since the injury. Rather than wade through the potentially tricky waters of restricted free agency next summer, the Wolves engaged agents Dan Fegan and Jarinn Akana of Relativity Sports to get a deal done.Ricky is only in his fourth season and because of his work ethic and determination, we are confident that he will continue to grow as a player and a team leader, Saunders said in a statement. We look forward to many great years ahead of Ricky in a Timberwolves uniform.And after trading Kevin Love to the Cleveland Cavaliers this summer, Rubio also became the player that will lead youngsters Andrew Wiggins, Zach LaVine and Anthony Bennett into the post-Love era.He came to us with such high expectations and he immediately proved why we were so high on him, Taylor said. Unfortunately he got hurt at the end of his rookie season, but he has worked so hard to come back and we believe he has a long and successful career ahead of him. Hes a great foundation for our franchise and were very happy to keep Ricky here long term to work and grow with the young nucleus that we have.One of the leagues best passers, Rubio got quite an assist from the NBAs new television deal. The league signed new agreements with ESPN and Turner totalling $24 billion earlier this month. It remains unclear just how soon the massive extensions will flood the league with cash and send the salary cap soaring, but the inevitability helped the Timberwolves feel more comfortable writing a bigger check to lock Rubio in.With Kemba Walker signing a four-year, $48 million deal with Charlotte and Goran Dragic and Rajon Rondo figuring to cash in next summer, Rubios deal may not look quite so large when the salary cap starts to rise.Youre getting paid more, you have to earn it, Rubio said. You have to show why youre getting paid this money. Of course theres going to be extra pressure. 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Scherzer tossed a three-hitter in his 179th career start for his first complete game and Victor Martinez hit his 16th homer to lead the Detroit Tigers a 4-0 win over the Chicago White Sox.CALGARY -- Bob Nicholsons advice to his successor at Hockey Canada is be as comfortable having a beer with a minor hockey coach in Kindersley, Sask., as you are in the New York office of NHL commissioner Gary Bettman. From the 3,500 minor hockey associations across the country to the highest halls of hockey power, Nicholsons ability to establish, build and maintain connections turned Hockey Canada into a powerful sports organization. After 16 years as president and chief executive officer, Nicholsons last day on the job was spent presiding over the organizations annual general meeting in Calgary. "There are so many partnerships you have to work on," Nicholson said Saturday. "Thats how you grow the business side of the game and how you grow the game itself." His successor will be chosen by Hockey Canadas board of directors. Its a job of many moving parts that includes player, coach and official development programs, national teams, corporate sales and marketing, licensing, insurance, regulations and building consensus among 13 provincial branches. Nicholsons parting instructions also included tapping into Canadas multicultural population. "We need to figure out how to deal with new Canadians," he explained. "We need to be more flexible. We cant just register kids from September to April. We should have two or three hockey seasons. "The families are changing. We cant continue to do things we did in the 70s, 80s and 90s. There has to be change." There was a lot of that during Nicholsons tenure. The 60-year-old from Penticton, B.C., started with B.C. Hockey before joining Hockey Canada as vice-president in 1990. Hockey Canada and the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association merged in 1994 and Nicholson became president in 1998. "The reason there was a merger was both organizations were bankrupt," Nicholson recalled. The non-profit organization is now an operation of approximately $45 million annually due in large part to marketing and packaging of Canadas passion, as well as turning the organization into a brand. "The easiest way to describe that was when I started as president we had 20 staff and we have 127 staff today. Our budgets were $5 million total," Nicholson said. "We just really took the mark and built partnerships." A prime example is the world mens under-20 hockey championship that is a major contributor to the coffers. Hockey Canada parlayed the annual tournaments growing popularity into lucrative sponsorships and a large television contract with TSN. The money goes not only to Hockey Canada, but to the Canadian Hockey League that supplies a large number of players to the tournament as well as minor hockey associations who develop them. Nicholson struck a deal with the Internationaal Ice Hockey Federation to bring the tournament to Canada every two years starting in 2015.dddddddddddd Its also been held in Canada three of the last five years. "The world juniors and the womens worlds, those are a real staple in this country and theyre a big part of the tradition and also the financial side of it," Nicholson said. Canada has won both mens and womens Olympic hockey gold in back-to-back Winter Games. The 2002 mens hockey team, assembled by Wayne Gretzky, won gold to end a 50-year drought at the Winter Olympics. Canadian teams have won 44 gold at world championships, Olympics and World Cups on Nicholsons watch. "Look at the people hes brought into our organization, whether its high-end professional staff or people like Wayne Gretzky and Steve Yzerman," Hockey Canada chairman Jim Hornell said. "His capacity to bring people into our organization is huge and that will live on." Registration rose from 519,000 in 1998 when Nicholson took over to 634,892 this past season. Much of that growth has come in the female game with an increase from 29,000 to almost 90,000 today. Nicholson has also been front and centre on thorny issues. In the wake of revelations that junior hockey coach Graham James sexually abused players, a Speak Out program was established in 1997 to help prevent abuse and bullying in sport. When to introduce bodychecking in minor hockey has been a source of continual and fractious debate. Concussions in hockey are problematic for the long-term health of players. Nicholson emphasized safety in his final address at the AGM. "Everything you do, do it for the player," he said. "Its not about the turf youre representing or the area of the country you live in. Do whats best for the player. Player safety, those terms are all changing. We have to change with the time. "I really believe when I look back 10 years from now, this organization is going to go to a whole other level. As long as you continue to focus on the players, making sure players play this game safe, Canada will always be the country that carries this game worldwide." Establishing an initiation program to introduce children age five and six to hockey is part of Nicholsons legacy. He also oversaw the move of Hockey Canadas headquarters from Father David Bauer Arena at the University of Calgary to the WinSport at Canada Olympic Park. His first day off the job Sunday was to be spent golfing in Penticton. Nicholson will continue as a IIHF vice-president. Speculation is the NHL will come calling. "I dont know," Nicholson said. "In fairness Ive got a lot of options on my table. I told everyone I wasnt going to speak until June 1. Im going to have to deal with some things and see where it goes." ' ' '