Neues » The Cubs have Monday off

VANCOUVER -- The man charged with the job of revitalizing the Vancouver Canucks made his first major move toward erasing the memory of one of the teams worst seasons in recent history. Trevor Linden, the former Vancouver captain who has taken over as the teams president, put his stamp on the Canucks by firing head coach John Tortorella on Thursday. Linden said the action was the first step in moving on from a frustrating season that saw the Canucks miss the playoffs for the first time since 2008. "Today is about the future of this team and the goal of getting it back to the Stanley Cup playoffs," Linden told a news conference. Tortorellas firing was expected, but Linden said he didnt want to rush the decision. "I tried to come in from a neutral place," he said. "At the end of the day I kept coming back to a lot of things I didnt like that I saw trending. I just felt to move forward and kind of put a new perspective and new direction, it was the right thing to do." Besides Tortorella, assistant coach Mike Sullivan was also relieved of his duties. They join fired president and general manager Mike Gillis as those paying the price for a dismal year that saw the Canucks finish 25th overall. Assistant coaches Glen Gulutzan and Darryl Williams and goaltender coach Roland Melanson will keep their jobs. Linden hopes to have a new general manager hired by the end of the month. The search for a coach could coincide with looking for a GM. "I have a real strong (GM) candidate list that I will be starting the interview process next week," said Linden. "I think the two processes can move along together for a certain period of time. "Its important the manager have a great deal of input on the coaching direction. That would be the ideal situation." One of the names most frequently mentioned for the Vancouver GMs job is Jim Benning, Bostons assistant general manager and a former teammate of Linden. The Bruins have the potential to play deep into the Stanley Cup playoff. Linden refused to be specific about any candidates but indicated playoff teams may be willing to let him talk to their staff. "I have not got any pushback on timing from a playoff standpoint," he said. Linden wants a coach with experience at "many levels." The person must be a teacher and be able to communicate with his players. One of the most popular Canucks of all time, Linden is trying to repair the teams image and its relationship with fans left disillusioned by Vancouvers drop from the ranks of the NHLs elite. "This is a fresh start for our team and youll see us make some other changes this summer," he said in a letter to season ticket holders. "It starts with how we shape our management and coaching staffs and the roster improvements were able to make." The Canucks had a good start under Tortorella but finished the year with a 36-35-11 record for 83 points. The Canucks had just 13 wins in the 41 games since Jan. 1. Vancouver also struggled to score, managing just 196 goals on the season, leaving the Canucks tied for second least in the league. At an April 14 season-ending news conference Tortorella was blunt when he said the Canucks are getting old and the core needed revitalizing. Linden was asked about the comments. "We talked about that," he said. "I dont totally agree with everything he said." Tortorella, who won a Stanley Cup coaching Tampa Bay in 2004, was hired as the Canucks 17th head coach last June to replace the fired Alain Vigneault. Vigneault took over Tortorellas old team, the New York Rangers, and has led them into the second round of this seasons playoffs. Tortorella has four years remaining on a contact which is estimated at US$2 million a season. Its estimated the Canucks owe Gillis $4 million for the remaining four years left on his contract. Tortorella could be cantankerous, even rude, when dealing with the media during his five seasons with the Rangers. He kept his promise to be different in Vancouver, where he was cordial and often humorous when talking to reporters. On the ice Tortorella preached defence and shot blocking. He used star players Daniel and Henrik Sedin on the penalty kill. He also faced criticism for the amount of ice time he heaped on front-line players like the Sedins and centre Ryan Kesler, who averaged 21 minutes 48 seconds of ice time a night. Tortorellas decision to start rookie goaltender Eddie Lack in the outdoor Heritage Classic game frustrated veteran Roberto Luongo. That decision eventually resulted in Luongo being traded to Florida. A rash of injuries took their toll, Both Sedins, Alex Burrows and defenceman Chris Tanev all missed a significant number of games with injuries. Noted for his fiery manner behind the bench Tortorella shocked management and the teams owners when he tried to get into the Calgary Flames locker-room following a line brawl in a Jan. 18 game in Vancouver. Tortorella was prevented from getting at Flames coach Bob Hartley and was suspended for six games. The Canucks were 2-4-0 during that period, then 2-7-1 when Tortorella returned. Linden said that incident did not factor in Tortorellas firing. Canuck players said they played a role in the fate of both Gillis and Tortorella. "The bottom line is if we win more games, then guys dont lose their jobs," said defenceman Kevin Bieksa. Among the available coaches is Barry Trotz, who was fired from Nashville last month after 15 seasons with the Predators. Other candidates include L.A. assistant coach John Stevens and former Tampa Bay coach Guy Boucher. "We will do everything we can to make this team as good as it can be and get back to the Stanley Cup playoffs," Linden said. "We have ideas of how we can do that. "Going down that path you need things and puzzles to fit together." Derek Jeter Yankees Jersey . Jagr had a goal and two assists, Andy Greene scored 43 seconds into overtime and Marek Zidlicky had two goals as the Devils rallied past the Washington Capitals 5-4 Saturday night. Raul Mondesi Yankees Jersey .J. -- Richard Sherman, Russell Wilson and Marshawn Lynch deservedly draw the attention for what theyve done in getting the Seattle Seahawks to the Super Bowl. https://www.cheapyankees.com/2841g-hidek...ey-yankees.html. Hamelin overcame a weak start to win bronze in the 500-metre race behind winner Wu Dajing of China and American J.R. Celski on Saturday at the world short track speed skating championship. Nestor Cortes Jr. Yankees Jersey .com) - Colorado Rockies shortstop Troy Tulowitzki was named the National League Player of the Month for April. Jonathan Holder Jersey .com) - Klay Thompson is quickly proving he is worth every penny of his recently signed four-year contract extension.PHOENIX -- Chicago Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo made a remarkable catch, tumbling into the photo well to snag a foul ball. And it might have cost the Cubs the game. Josh Collmenter threw seven sharp innings, David Peralta drove in a pair of runs and the Diamondbacks beat the Cubs 3-1 on Sunday to complete a three-game sweep. The go-ahead run was waved home automatically in the sixth inning after Rizzo came down with the ball in his glove for the out. By rule, if a defensive player takes the ball out of play, each runner is awarded a base. The only run Collmenter allowed was Rizzos 23rd home run of the season, matching his total for all of last year. Collmenter (8-5) gave up just three other hits. "I was able to command the fastball both sides of the plate," he said. "With a lot of lefties in the lineup I was able to pitch in really well, got a lot of popups and ground balls and the defence made some great plays." David Peralta had a run-scoring double to tie it, then came home from third on Rizzos camera well plunge. Rizzo said it was "just instinct" that he lunged for the ball. "I didnt think I would go in (the camera well)," he said. "But it was a little farther then I thought." The Diamondbacks earned their second sweep of the season, first at home. The Cubs have lost 11 of 13 since Jeff Samardzija was traded to Oakland on July 5. Jake Arrieta (5-2), who had a stomach virus the past few days, allowed three runs and four hits in 6 2-3 innings for the Cubs. It was a tough series, tough game today," he said. "The challenge really for me was what I had to deal with the last few days, trying to hold fluids down. My body was weak not being able to eat any solid food. Addison Reed pitcched a perfect ninth for his 23rd save in 28 tries.dddddddddddd The Diamondbacks are 3-0 after the All-Star break for the second time in franchise history. The other was in 2002. The game was scoreless through five innings, then Rizzo lashed the first pitch he saw in the sixth into the seats in the right corner, moving into a tie for the NL homer lead with Miamis Giancarlo Stanton. Rizzo homered twice in the series opener. Arizona scored twice in the sixth, the first on consecutive doubles by Ender Inciarte and Peralta. Peralta scored from third when Rizzo caught Aaron Hills high pop foul as he fell over the bar protecting the camera well near the Cubs dugout. In hindsight, Rizzo might have been better off just letting the ball drop foul. But, he said, "I dont think there is any Cubs fan that wanted me to miss it or any Diamondbacks fan that wanted me to catch it." The Diamondbacks won a challenge in the seventh when Mark Trumbo was called out stealing second. After a review, the call was reversed. Trumbo scored when Peralta singled. Ryan Sweeney made two big catches in centre for the Cubs. The second was the most spectacular, when he ran deep toward the wall to barely flag down Paul Goldschmidts deep fly. Notes: Arizona came from behind in all three games. ... Chicagos Chris Coghlan has hit safely in 16 of his past 17 games. ... The Cubs have Monday off, then open a 10-game homestand with a three-game series against San Diego. The Cubs RH Kyle Hendricks (0-0, 6.00 ERA) makes his second big-league start in Tuesdays opener. The Padres go with LH Eric Stults. Arizona opens a three-game interleague series with Detroit. LH Vidal Nuno starts for Arizona, RH Rick Porcello (12-5, 3.39) for the Tigers. ' ' '