Inland Waterways » that they needed to be

PITTSBURGH -- The Pittsburgh Penguins hired Ray Shero as general manager eight years ago with the mandate to build a roster around two of the games brightest stars and turn ticker-tape parades through downtown into an annual rite of spring. Nearly a decade -- but just one Stanley Cup later -- Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin find themselves on a perennially underachieving team. And Shero finds himself out of a job. The Penguins fired Shero on Friday, three days after another early playoff exit, this one a seven-game loss to the New York Rangers in the Eastern Conference semifinals. Coach Dan Bylsma remains in charge until Sheros replacement gets a chance to evaluate the entire organization top to bottom. "We share the disappointment of our fans that we have not had success in the playoffs over the past five seasons," co-owners Mario Lemieux and Ron Burkle said in a joint statement. "We believe that new leadership in the general managers office will bring a new approach and new energy, and help us return to championship form." Assistant general manager Jason Botterill will serve as general manager on an interim basis. Penguins President and CEO David Morehouse called Botterill a candidate to take over and believes whomever the team brings in wont need to make major changes on a club that won 51 games in 2013-14. "Its not a complete rebuild," Morehouse said. "This is a team that has had a level of success. What were trying to do now is get from good to great." Its a destination the Penguins reached only briefly during Sheros tenure, spending most of the time in a murky middle ground that made them one of the leagues model franchises during the regular season but a symbol of disappointment once the calendar crept into May and beyond. Pittsburgh won the franchises third Cup in 2009 but has failed to produce a bookend. Pittsburgh is just 4-5 in playoff series over the last five years after blowing a 3-1 series lead against New York. Morehouse didnt blame the 51-year-old Sheros ouster on one specific misstep. "This is a decision thats been in the works for a long time since weve won the Cup," Morehouse said. "We wanted to get back to the Stanley Cup finals and we havent and were going to make some changes." The Penguins brought Shero in before the 2006-07 season and tasked him with finding the right kind of players to complement Crosby and Malkins otherworldly offensive talent. It culminated on a giddy night in Detroit in 2009, when the Penguins edged the Red Wings 2-1 in Game 7 to earn the franchises third Cup, a run that included the crucial trade deadline acquisitions of forwards Chris Kunitz and Bill Guerin. It was supposed to mark the beginning of a dynasty. Yet five seasons have come and gone with the Penguins in a familiar position: watching the final stages of the playoffs go on without them. It hasnt been for lack of trying. Shero remained aggressive in investing in a "win now" mode as the ensuing disappointments piled up. He enthusiastically said the Penguins were "all in" last year after trading for Jarome Iginla, Jussi Jokinen, Brenden Morrow and Douglas Murray. The moves often created headlines but little else, and boatloads of regular-season victories and a sellout streak seven years and counting proved no longer good enough. Whether Bylsma will be along for the ride remains unclear. The affable, open-minded Michigan native was a revelation when the Penguins promoted him from their American Hockey League affiliate in the spring of 2009, hoping his optimism would help a loaded team break out of a midseason funk. It worked brilliantly. Four months after taking the job, the former NHL nomad who spent nine seasons as a gritty fourth-line forward was raising the Cup in ecstasy. Considering Crosby and Malkin were both in their early 20s at the time, champagne toasts were expected. A half-decade later, Bylsma is the winningest coach in franchise history with 252 wins but the wait for another Cup run continues. While Pittsburgh enjoyed nearly unparalleled success from October to April -- including easily capturing the Metropolitan Division this year despite losing more than 500-man games to injury -- the Penguins again struggled to adapt in the post-season. Morehouse said the new general manager will determine whether Bylsma and the rest of the staff gets another shot. The 43-year-old Bylsma has two years remaining on his contract, the product of an extension he received last June as a vote of confidence from Shero following a four-game sweep at the hands of Boston in the Eastern Conference finals. The deal came with a promise to adopt a more defensive-minded approach. The Penguins even brought in longtime NHL coach Jacques Martin as an assistant, an old-school yin to Bylsmas new-school yang. Crosby took the blame for the teams underperformance as the Penguins cleared out their locker on Thursday. A day later the general manager ordered to put the leagues leading scorer in a position to keep Pittsburgh at the top was cleaning out his office. Whoever ends up redecorating will have his tough choices to make. At the same time, he gets to start with Crosby and Malkin firmly entrenched. Both players are signed through the rest of the decade. There are worse places to start. "A lot of teams would like to be where we are," Morehouse said. "However we do have high expectations and we do want to get to them." Cheap Air Max 95 Wholesale . Marian Gaborik had two goals and an assist and Martin Jones made just 17 saves to record his fourth shutout of the season as the Kings snapped a three-game losing skid with a 3-0 victory over the lowly Oilers on Thursday. Cheap Air Max 95 NZ .J. Ward appeared in court Friday on misdemeanour charges that he threw a glass mug at a bartender at a Denver strip club. http://www.airmax95pnz.com/ . Johns IceCaps erased an early two-goal deficit to come from behind and defeat the host Portland Pirates 5-4 on Saturday in American Hockey League action. Air Max 95 NZ Wholesale . -- On any given day here at his companys Silicon Valley headquarters, Vivek Ranadive is ready to compete against any employee who wants to challenge him to any contest. Buy Air Max 95 NZ .J. -- Pete Carroll said it was the suspension of linebacker Bruce Irvin last spring that finally got the attention of the rest of the Seattle Seahawks that they needed to be taking their commitment to the team more seriously.LONDON, England - Bottom-place Fulham beat Newcastle 1-0 on Saturday for its first win in the Premier League since New Years Day. The Cottagers last victory came in a 2-1 home win over West Ham when Rene Meulensteen was still in charge. Since then, a miserable run of seven defeats and two draws has seen the club part with the Dutch coach and replace him with German Felix Magath. And the 60-year-old Magath claimed his first victory since taking over when Ashkan Dejagah cut in from the left before rifling a shot under goalkeeper Tim Krul in the 68th minute. The win sees Fulham move to within three points of Crystal Palace in 17th place while Newcastle was left in ninth on 43 points. Newcastle manager Alan Pardew served the first of his seven-game ban for headbutting an opposing player. -- SWANSEA, Wales - West Bromwich Albion recovered from conceding an early goal by scoring twice in the second half to earn a 2-1 win at Swansea on Saturday in the Premier League. A day after severing ties with striker Nicolas Anelka, West Brom had a terrible start as Roland Lamah put Swansea ahead in just the second minute. But Stephane Sessegnon equalized in the 52nd and Youssuf Mulumbu netted the winner in the 85th to put West Brom three points above the relegation zone. They are now just one point behind 14-place Swansea. West Brom announced late Friday it had fired Anelka after the French forward said on Twitter that he had terminated his contract following his ban for a controversial goal celebration gesture. Spanish striker Michu came on as a substitute for Swansea, making his return after a lengthy injury layoff. -- SOUTHAMPTON, England - Southampton secured a 4-2 win over relegation-threatened Norwich in the English Premier League on Saturday. The Saints took a fifth-minute lead when Morgan Schneiderlin raced onto midfielder Gaston Ramirezss pass before slotting past John Ruddy.dddddddddddd The visitors found themselves chasing a two-goal margin when substitute Ricky Lambert struck seconds after his introduction in the 57th. Lambert then turned provider for Jay Rodriguez, who converted from close range in the 72nd. Norwich set up a dramatic finale after grabbing two goals in quick succession. First through substitute Johan Elmander in the 85th before Robert Snodgrass beat goalkeeper Artur Boruc seconds later. But youngster Sam Gallacher calmed Southampton nerves as Norwich chased the equalizer, with the Canaries now a mere four points outside the relegation zone. -- SUNDERLAND, England - Crystal Palace held Sunderland to a 0-0 draw in the Premier League on Saturday in a game between two sides fighting to stave off relegation. The hosts dominated possession but struggled to create scoring chances, with Fabio Borini coming closest in the 83rd minute when his hard shot hit the crossbar. Kagisho Dikgacoi missed a late chance for the visitors to steal the win when his shot from the centre of the box went wide. Palace remained three points above Sunderland in 17th place, but the visitors have two games in hand. -- STOKE, England -- Peter Odemwingie scored twice as Stoke came from behind to beat West Ham 3-1 and move further away from relegation danger in the English Premier League on Saturday. England striker Andy Carroll gave West Ham the lead in the fifth minute with his first goal since April, only for Peter Crouchs acrobatic effort to strike the shoulder of Odemwingie and ricochet in for the equalizer in the 32nd. Marko Arnautovic put Stoke ahead in the 69th and Odemwingie finished a counter attack with a powerful shot from an acute angle with 11 minutes to go. Stoke moved into the top half while West Ham is six points clear of the relegation zone. 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