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Ottawa Senators general manager Pierre Dorion was so pleased to get Mike Hoffman under contract that he hugged another member of the clubs management team.The Senators and Hoffman, Ottawas leading scorer this past season, avoided going to arbitration by agreeing to a four-year contract worth nearly $21 million.This is a great day for the organization. I shouldnt tell you this, but I actually hugged (director of hockey operations) Randy Lee today, Dorion said on a conference call Wednesday shortly after the announcement of the deal, which carries a $5.19 million annual cap hit.Obviously we see Mike as a huge piece of our team going forward.Hoffman led the Senators in goals for the second straight season, hitting a career high with 29 goals. He also set career highs with 30 assists, 59 points and a team-leading nine power-play goals.The 26-year-old was particularly pleased to avoid arbitration for a second straight summer. Hoffman was awarded a one-year, $2 million deal through the process last summer, his third consecutive one-year contract. His new deal doesnt expire until the end of the 2019-20 season.His arbitration hearing was scheduled for Aug. 4.Ottawa was most intrigued to see what impact new head coach Guy Boucher could have on the Kitchener, Ontario, native. Hoffman starred for Boucher in junior with the Drummondville Voltigeurs of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, scoring 98 goals over two seasons while capturing the league championship in 2009.The thing thats exciting about Mike Hoffman is hes going to play for a coach that, without divulging too many secrets, that simply adores him, Dorion said.Dorion was particularly excited by how Boucher, formerly the Tampa Bay Lightning head coach, planned to use Hoffman on the power play.Hoffman seemed to clash at times with Dave Cameron, the former Senators coach who was fired at the end of last season. Cameron benched Hoffman for the entire third period of an early March win over Toronto before dropping him to the fourth line.Hoffman had 46 even-strength points, second to captain Erik Karlsson among Senators. His 56 goals over the past two seasons rank 19th among all NHL players.Obviously I had to prove myself again, Hoffman said. I didnt want to just be a one-hit wonder kind of guy and last season I think I kind of showed what I can do in this league.Hoffman could have become an unrestricted free agent next summer, but the Senators opted to buy three years of unrestricted status. The new deal carries a limited no-trade clause (a list of 10 teams) that takes effect in the 2017-18 season.Dorion said a new deal wasnt close last month at the draft, but the sides made progress on term and dollars last week. Dorion was discouraged again on Monday though before meeting with Hoffmans agent Rob Hooper on Tuesday.The sides came to an agreement a day later.Twenty-two-year-old defenseman Cody Ceci is the only Senator still unsigned. Ceci is a restricted free agent, one whom Dorion said will be in the lineup when Ottawa opens the regular season.I can assure you that Cody will be playing for us on October 12, he said.Asked about the prospect of 40 goals for Hoffman, a former fifth-round pick, Dorion responded, I hope! But I definitely see more than 29, he said.I see an improvement. I definitely see someone whos going to step forward, take a bigger role on our team, not just score goals, but help us win games. I see someone whos been a good player in the NHL, but who can grow even further. Phil McConkey Youth Jersey . 10 Texas Rangers jersey for one last time. 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Fellow centre Pavel Datsyuk remains out because of a concussion. Zetterberg has 11 goals and 19 assists for a team-high 30 points, and Datsyuk has a team-high 12 goals and 11 assists. RIO DE JANEIRO -- American Ibtihaj Muhammad looked like all the other fencers when she stepped on the piste, save for the non-descript black scarf covering her head.With that small gesture, Muhammad made history.Muhammad became the first American athlete Monday to compete in the Olympics with a hijab, which she wears to adhere to the tenets of her Muslim faith.Muhammad, ranked eighth in the world in sabre, beat Ukranian Olena Kravatska 15-13 in her first match before falling to Frances Cecilia Berder 15-12 in the round of 16.Muhammad will compete again on Saturday in the team sabre event.I feel like its a blessing to be able to represent so many people who dont have voices, who dont speak up, Muhammad said. Its just been a really remarkable experience.The gold medal in the weapon went to Russias Yana Egorian, who scored the final two points to stun teammate Sofya Velikaya 15-14.Muhammad, a New Jersey native and three-time NCAA All-American from Duke, became an instant star when she qualified for her first Olympics earlier this year. And she embraced the spotlight, which helped make her an unlikely face of the U.S. team given how little publicity fencing typically receives.It represents who shes been her entire life. Ever since she was a little girl, she never let anything hold her back. She never set limits. Shes always striving to be the very best, said Ibtihajs brother Qareeb, who was overcome with emotion when he saw his sister compete. Despite the adversity shes faced; being a Muslim, being an African-American, being a female, shes still confident in her ability to be successfull.dddddddddddd Shes my hero.Muhammads siblings, parents and friends came from as far away as Los Angeles and New Jersey to cheer her on, giving Muhammad a standing ovation ahead of her first match.Muhammad got off to a shaky start against Kravatska, but she rallied with a string of points that put her over the top.But Berder, ranked ninth, took control of their round of 16 match midway through and rolled to victory. Muhammad was so frustrated by her performance that she needed over an hour to compose herself before meeting reporters.In a sport like fencing, youre your own biggest opponent. If you can control yourself and your nerves and your emotions and execute the actions that you want to execute in the way that you want to execute, youll always be successful. I failed to do that, Muhammad said.Muhammads history-making moment overshadowed the upset loss by teammates Mariel Zagunis in the round of 16.Zagunis, a two-time Olympic gold medalist ranked third in the world, was beaten by Russias Ekaterina Dyachenko 15-12.Still, Muhammad and Zagunis are two major reasons why the Americans will be a medal favorite on Saturday.There is that silver lining in the sense that you do have that team event. I know that the Americans didnt perform in the way that we wanted, but I love my team, I love my teammates and I believe in them. I believe in myself. I believe in us, and I want us to win a medal more than anything. I want us to do it for our country, Muhammad said. ' ' '