DAVOS, Switzerland -- Glen Metropolit hasnt played an NHL game since 2010, but on Thursday, the oldest player on Canadas Spengler Cup roster showed why hes the captain of the Canadian squad. Miles Mikolas . After nearly scoring on his first shift of the game, the 39-year-old Metropolit -- whos played for Lugano in the Swiss league the past two seasons -- picked up a goal in the first period and assisted on Derek Walsers game winner in the third as Canada opened up the Spengler Cup with a 5-4 victory over the HC Vitkovice Steel of the Czech Republic. "Even at his age, on the blue-line and in the offensive zone, hes still one of the best players in the game in Switzerland so thats where hes going to be really good for us," head coach Doug Shedden said. "Hes played for me before and thats why I made him captain. This could be his last Spengler Cup and his children are here visiting from Florida. "Its just something that gets him excited about playing." Byron Ritchie, Micki DuPont, and Alexandre Bolduc also scored for Canada in a back-and-forth offensive game that saw leads slip away between both teams four times. Rudolf Huna, Peter Huzeka, Roman Szturic and Lukas Kucsera scored for Vitkovice. Vitkovices Filip Sindelar was the busier of the two goaltenders, stopping 37 of 42 shots in the losing effort. Canadas Chris Mason made 18 saves. "We were outshooting them pretty good all night," Shedden said. "We really carried the play against them." Ritchies goal tied the game at 4-4 at 7:58 of the third period, and Walser beat Sindelar off passes from Anthony Stewart and Metropolit at 13:47 to pull Canada ahead for good. Bolduc opened the scoring with an unassisted goal at 2:30 of the first period, but Kucsera responded with a goal for the Czech club team less than two minutes later. Canada took the lead again on Metropolits goal, and Vitkovice replied to take a 2-2 tie into the first intermission. The second period proved costly for Canada when a turnover gave Vitkovice a 4-3 lead 11 seconds after DuPont tied the game 3-3 on a power play. Shedden said the mistake could be chalked up to unfamiliarity between his players, whove had just one practice and one morning skate together before their first game. "The problem was we gave up some easy scoring chances off some miscues and thats going to happen with guys who havent played together, and it happens every night anyway if you have played together." Shedden said. "I thought their goalie really kept them in it because we really crashed the net all night, and it showed the heart of the Canadians. "We were down going into the third period and we thought we were playing well enough, we just had to keep at it and we did that. You work hard enough eventually youre going get rewarded with a couple goals." Canada plays host HC Davos on Saturday. Custom Cardinals Jerseys .C. - Heat coach Erik Spoelstra says Danny Granger, Chris Andersen and Udonis Haslem are still not ready to play and will miss Wednesday nights game against the Charlotte Hornets. Ted Simmons . Browns advice worked. Irving scored 20 points, including seven in the fourth quarter, and Cleveland defeated the Los Angeles Clippers 88-82 Saturday night. Irving made his first shot of the night on a layup a little over three minutes into the game. http://www.custommlbcardinalsjersey.com/custom-ryan-helsley-jersey-large-911q.html . The 21-year-old Canadian earned a spot in his third career ATP final on Saturday thanks to his first Top 10 victory of the new tennis season, a 6-4, 6-4 win over world no. 10 Nicolas Almagro of Spain.ATLANTA -- The Braves added a needed veteran for their rotation Monday when they agreed to a $4 million, one-year contract with right-hander Gavin Floyd. Now the question is when Floyd will be ready to pitch. Floyd, 30, is recovering from surgery in May to repair the ulnar collateral ligament and a torn flexor muscle in his right elbow. That ended his seventh season with the White Sox. He passed a physical in Atlanta on Monday before completing the deal, which also includes roster and performance bonuses. Floyd said his arm "feels tremendous." "Its nice to start over, create the right mechanics ... all the simple things to become more natural," he said. Atlanta also avoided arbitration with pitcher Brandon Beachy, agreeing to a $1.45 million, one-year deal. He would earn a $25,000 bonus for 30 starts. Floyd, who spoke at Turner Field on Monday, said he already has recovered his arm speed and is just working on endurance. He said he has been cleared to throw from 55 feet. Braves general manager Frank Wren said he hopes Floyd can be ready in May. Despite his optimistic update on his recovery, Floyd said "I have no idea" when hell be ready to pitch. Floyd said he liked the Braves, who won the NL East in 2013, for their consistent success. "It just seemed like all the arrows were pointing to Atlanta," he said. Wren said he expects Floyd to be a "solidd, middle of the rotation starter. Adam Wainwright. " The Braves needed more experience in the rotation after losing Tim Hudson, who signed with the Giants, and free agent Paul Maholm. The rotation returns Julio Teheran, Mike Minor, Kris Medlen, Brandon Beachy and Alex Wood. Medlen, 28, has the most experience of the group. Beachy, 27, missed most of the 2013 season recovering from elbow ligament-replacement surgery. David Hale, who was 1-0 with a 0.82 ERA in two starts this year, could compete for a spot. Wood pitched in relief in 20 of his 31 appearances last season. Even before Hudson signed with the Giants, Wren said adding a veteran starting pitcher was a top off-season priority. Wren said Floyd will help the younger starters. "Hes a solid starter thats been around and knows what needs to be done," Wren said. Before the elbow injury, Floyd consistently logged 180 or more innings with the White Sox. He won 10 or more games in five straight seasons from 2008-12. He was 0-4 with a 5.18 ERA in five games this year. Floyds best season in Chicago came in 2008, when he was 17-8. He has a 70-70 career record with the White Sox and Phillies. Floyd can earn $675,000 in roster bonuses: $175,000 for 15 days and $250,000 each for 30 and 60 days. He also can earn $250,000 each for each start from 21-28 and $500,000 apiece for each start from 30-33. ' ' '