The Colorado Avalanche confirmed rumors on Thursday that Patrick Roy is the team's next head coach.

The 47-year-old Roy also was named vice president of hockey operations. He replaces Joe Sacco, who was fired on April 28 after Colorado finished last in the Western Conference and missed the playoffs for a third straight season.

"This is an unbelievable day for me," Roy said. "It's a new and exciting challenge that I am really looking forward to. Almost 10 years to the day that I announced my retirement as a player, I am back in Denver and hope the fans are as excited as I am."

There was speculation that Roy accepted the job earlier in the week. The team announced Thursday that it had reached an agreement in principle with the Hall of Fame goaltender.

Roy retired as an Avalanche player on May 28, 2003, with a then-NHL record for

The New Orleans Saints wrapped up the first week of organized team activities Thursday with Coach Sean Payton calling the shots again and Drew Brees completing passes, all the while the rest of the team moved around with few - if any - distractions.

Unlike in recent offseasons when the Saints were dealing with a bounty scandal and Brees' contract situation or a labor stalemate or a Super Bowl hangover, all seemed right with the Saints.

With the media in attendance for the OTA, the Saints moved about their drills and executed their plays like it was all too familiar to them.

Players and coaches alike, said all has been well this offseason now that Payton is back following a season-long suspension and Brees is under center after missing the offseason last year.

"This is the first normal offseason we've had since the '09 offseason," Brees said. "In '10 we were coming off the Super Bowl, and that wasn't normal. In

Frisco, Texas – Christian Life guard Johnathan Stove is proving first-hand how a good showing in the Nike Elite Youth Basketball League can raise a player's stock on the recruiting trail.

Stove, who held offers from Louisiana Tech, Southern, Southeastern Louisiana and Xavier New Orleans, has recently seen his profile expand to include some out-of-state schools.

The 6-foot-4, 196-pound Stove has led the Nike Team Louisiana in scoring (11.7 points per game) and rebounding (6.8) so far in the Nike EYBL as the team heads into Session No. 4 in Minneapolis on Friday.

Stove, who is the No. 5 prospect in the NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune Super 16 rankings , says Southern Mississippi, Alabama-Birmingham and Ohio all have started to show a little bit more interest in him since the Nike EYBL has started.

"It kind of exploded," Stove said. "I just came out there and played hard and all of a sudden, it's been blowing up. I just played