dych had played consistently, returning well to neutralize Raonics booming serve and levell

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. Aqib Talib Jersey . 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." Marcus Peters Rams Jersey . Schaub will start for an injured Case Keenum and try to help the Texans end a 12-game skid. Schaubs last action in Houston came when he took over late in a game against Oakland on Nov. 17 as Keenum was struggling. Brandin Cooks Jersey . -- So much for concern that running back Marshawn Lynch would be absent from the Seattle Seahawks minicamp. http://www.laramsfansshop.com/c-75-rams-john-franklin-myers-jersey.aspx . The Suns termed Fridays surgery by team doctor Thomas Carter a success. No timetable was given for Bledsoes return but the team said in a news release that he "will pursue a possible return to action during the second half" of the season.PARIS - Seventh-seeded Milos Raonic advanced to the final of the Paris Masters for the first time with a 6-3, 3-6, 7-5 victory over former champion Tomas Berdych on Saturday.The Canadian, who produced one of the biggest wins of his career in the previous round by defeating Roger Federer, will face top-ranked Novak Djokovic or Kei Nishikori in the final.After a tense fight between the two big servers, Raonic came out on top when Berdych, who won in Paris in 2005, lost his composure in the final game.Serving to stay in the match, the fifth-seeded Czech made four consecutive unforced errors, including two double-faults, to hand his opponent the win. Berdych smashed his racket in anger before leaving the indoor court.I just totally messed it up with the last game, Berdych said. It was definitely the worst game I ever played here on this tournament this year. Ramik Wilson Jersey. ntil his final game meltdown, Berdych had played consistently, returning well to neutralize Raonics booming serve and levelling the tie at one set apiece after securing an early break in the second set.You have days like this when things are going well and then, just at the last moment, everything is gone, Berdych said.Although he did not come close to his 21 aces against Federer, Raonic added 12 to increase his tally since the beginning of the week to 75 aces.The 23-year-old Raonic, who qualified for the ATP Finals for the first time with his victory over Federer, will be playing in his second Masters 1000 final after losing in Montreal to Rafael Nadal last year.Raonic has been enjoying the best year of his career, winning his sixth career title in Washington and making it to the semifinals at Wimbledon. 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