CALGARY - The Calgary Flames did not make the playoffs for a fifth straight year. The difference between this spring and the previous four is the Flames did not underachieve this time around. When since-deposed general manager Jay Feaster brought himself to say the word "rebuild" last summer, it confirmed following the departure of Jarome Iginla, Miikka Kiprusoff and Jay Bouwmeester that the Flames were going to be a lunchbucket squad until new stars emerged or were acquired. Calgary (35-40-7) finished 27th in the 30-team league this past season and second-last in the Western Conference above only Edmonton. The 77 points was the teams lowest total since 2002-03. The Flames went 19-14-1 after brawling with the Canucks in Vancouver on Jan. 18, but they were already in next-year territory after winning just nine games through November and December. The slow start opened the door to audition for the future. A dozen players made their NHL debut with the Flames this season. Calgary has a top-five pick in the NHL draft in June for the first time since 1973 when they were the Atlanta Flames. The Flames have a 10.7 per cent chance of winning the first overall pick in Tuesdays draft lottery. But in contrast with Oilers to the north — where people tossed jerseys on the ice in disgust — the Flames had more goodwill and patience from their fanbase. Calgary compensated for its lack of talent with tenacity. The Flames were involved in 49 one-goal games this season and went 25-24 in them. "The conclusion of a season that does not include playoff is a failure and we acknowledge that failure, but it was not a lost or wasted season in any sense of the word," said hockey operations president Brian Burke, who is also interim general manager until he hires a new one. "I think there were a lot of positive developments in this season that Im proud of. I think we gave (the fans) a product they enjoyed watching." Bob Hartley squeezed effort out of his group in his first full season behind the bench. The head coach has one year remaining on a three-year contract and Burke says Hartley will coach the team in 2014-15. "Once we get a general manager in place, Ill encourage that person to address that situation," Burke said. "Its not the end of the world when a coach works in the last year of his contract, but its not ideal. That will be up to the next GM." Hartley said prior to Calgarys home game "our report card still says we failed" but the coach said Monday that it was a "great day." "We decided late last year that we would get a new face to this organization. We would go with younger players," Hartley said. "From the inside — I dont know about the outside because Im not on the outside — from the inside, I saw commitment, I saw progress. Those guys gave us everything that they had." Unlike the previous four seasons when an expensive, veteran squad with stars on its roster fell short of the post-season, there was less disappointment and more optimism as the Flames packed their bags this time. With 22 goals, forward Sean Monahan became the first Flames rookie to score more than 21 since Iginla in 1996-97. The 19-year-old from Brampton, Ont., confirmed hell play for Canada in the world championships in Minsk, Belarus, next month. "Down the stretch, these last 20 games, carrying the puck, I felt more confident with the puck," Monahan said. "Thats something I want to be able to do next year, be confident with the puck, make plays and I guess produce a little bit more." Monahan and veterans Matt Stajan and Chris Butler raved about Mark Giordanos leadership skills in his first season as captain. The 30-year-old was also a key contributor on the ice with 47 points and a plus-12 rating. Giordano played himself into consideration for Canadas Olympic team. He declined the chance to participate in the world championships, saying a hand injury needed time to heal. When he was healthy, Karri Ramo played himself to No. 1 on Calgarys goaltending depth chart with a 17-15-4 record. The Finn has one year remaining on a two-year contract. "The players like him because he battles," Burke said. "I think Karri Ramo has established that he deserves to come back here as the No. 1 goaltender." Hobey Baker winner Johnny Gaudreau, who led the NCAA in scoring, signed a contract on the weekend and scored in his first NHL game Sunday in Vancouver. The players believe theyve built a foundation upon which to build for next season. All eyes turn to Burke, who he chooses as his new GM and assistant GM and how they in turn handle the draft and Calgarys cap space in free agency. "The GM search, were going to approach teams that missed the playoffs," Burke said. "If they have candidates were going to approach them today, some of them. "If we have to wait until after the draft to fill that position, we will." Burke took over as interim GM when he fired Feaster in December. Burke was brought on board in September as hockey ops president to accelerate Calgarys rebuild. His goal is to make the Flames bigger, stronger and meaner. He acquired a second- and third-round draft pick at the March 3 trade deadline, but added no players to the team. "I think truculence is part of this game," Burke said. "Everyone likes to make fun of that word because the first time I used it, a lot of people said its kind of a new word in hockey, but its not. "I think tough teams win. You look at the St. Louis Blues. Theyve been a dominant team all year. Their average weight is 208 pounds. In the West (conference) especially, if youre not a hostile team with size, youre not going to have success. We need to get bigger." Mike Cammalleri, Calgarys leading scorer and most expensive player counting $6 million against the salary cap, will be an unrestricted free agent July 1 unless he re-signs with the Flames. "I dont have anything to report," the 30-year-old said. "Just had some exit meetings and talked to Brian. He said wed talk again. Today wasnt the day to talk about that sort of thing. Today was a day to address the season. I am far from having ruled Calgary out as far as my future." Butler, 27, will also be a UFA for the first time in his career. "Its a unique opportunity, being unrestricted and having control of your destiny and being able to choose potentially where you want to go," Butler said. "Its an opportunity not everybody gets and it is something you earn and you work for. "Its something Ill think about, but its still a few months away and its kind of hard to think about right now having just played last night and wearing that jersey for the last three years." Forwards Paul Byron, Joen Colborne, Lance Bouma and T.J. Galiardi are among Calgarys restricted free agents this summer. . Hamilton signed offensive linemen Mike Filer, Joel Reinders, Landon Rice and Carson Rockhill. . Coming off a 6-0 drubbing at Chelsea on Saturday, Arsenal endured another demoralizing result after rallying for a 2-1 lead -- only to concede a fluke equalizer.
http://www.cheapjetsjerseyssale.com/?ta ... ersey-sale. With one week left in the regular season, Cornish - voted The Toughest Player To Bring Down - is a leading candidate for the CFLs Most Outstanding Player award. He has rushed for 1,799 yards and could break Willie Burdens club record for rushing yards in a single season with a 98-yard performance against the B. . Now he has a complete game. Scherzer tossed a three-hitter in his 179th career start for his first complete game and Victor Martinez hit his 16th homer to lead the Detroit Tigers a 4-0 win over the Chicago White Sox. .ca. Kerry, In the first period of Saturdays Montreal-Ottawa game, Brendan Gallagher is called for goaltender interference. Craig Anderson is outside the blue paint trying to make the save.OAKLAND, Calif. -- Theres nothing like a couple of timely home runs to get a stagnant offence back on track. Derek Norris hit a three-run homer, Stephen Vogt added a two-run shot, and the Oakland Athletics won their 12th straight against the Minnesota Twins with a 9-4 victory Saturday night. "Weve been getting progressively better offensively the last few days," manager Bob Melvin said. "The homers help. Weve been a little shy with those recently. That cures a lot of ills when youre scoring two and three runs off one swing of the bat." Jeff Samardzija (3-1) improved to 3-0 at home since coming to the AL West-leading As in a trade from the Cubs on July 4. He followed winning lefties Jon Lester and Scott Kazmir, who kept Minnesota in check over the first two games of the series, with six tough innings that forced him to throw 109 pitches. Vogt hit his second clout in three games in the fifth following a long funk. Norris connected for his 10th home run the next inning. "When runners get on base thats the time when you make your money," he said. "My power may not be able to compete with (Josh) Donaldson, (Brandon) Moss and guys like that, but I like to think when I do its meaningful and its not a solo home run when were up 8-0." Oakland drew seven walks in two innings to chase Trevor May (0-1) quickly from his forgettable major league debut. May threw 11 balls among his first 19 pitches and received a mound visit from pitching coach Rick Anderson after issuing a bases-loaded walk to Norris. But left fielder Josh Willingham fielded Josh Reddicks shallow fly and threw home for a nifty double play to save May further damage in a 21-pitch first. Anderson was out again after Mays three two-out walks loaded the bases in the second. Donaldson followed with a two-run single. May, winless in his last three outings for Triple-A Rochester, walked seven while throwing 63 pitches on a cool night when the 6-foot-5 right-handers parents travelled from Southwest Washington to be in the stands. The last Twins pitcher to walk seven was Francisco Liriano on Aug. 9, 2011, against Boston. Long man Samuel Deduno relieved and gave up both home runs. Samardzija allowed seven hits and two runs, struck out five and walked two as the As earned their first three-game winningg streak since six straight victories July 3-8.dddddddddddd Oaklands bullpen extended its scoreless innings streak to 29 2-3 innings before Jordan Schafers eighth-inning RBI double off Dan Otero. The As relievers set the mark Friday night at 28 2-3. POSTGAME TRADE The Twins traded right-hander Kevin Correia to the Dodgers for a player to be named or cash. Minnesota will call up ex-As lefty Tommy Milone to start Monday in Houston. Milone was dealt to the Twins at the July 31 deadline for outfielder Sam Fuld. "We are really excited to get him. We didnt want to give up Sammy Fuld," manager Ron Gardenhire said. "We got a nice pitcher out of the deal, a guy that knows how to pitch in the big leagues, good track record. Were going to get him up here. ... Weve made a spot now, and hes going to get the ball." LA RUSSAS FIRST PITCH Newly enshrined Hall of Famer Tony La Russa threw out the ceremonial first pitch to Twins bench coach Terry Steinbach on a night La Russas bobblehead was the giveaway and a banner in his honour was unfurled in left field. He is the last manager to lead the As to a World Series (1990) and championship (89). GOVERNORS VISIT New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie attended the game while on vacation with family, sporting a green As cap during his latest ballpark stop. He sat behind the As dugout. TRAINERS ROOM Twins: After a three-hit performance in nine innings Friday night, first baseman Joe Mauer added two more hits as he again tested his strained right oblique muscle on a rehab assignment with Class-A Cedar Rapids. He is likely to rejoin the Twins on Monday to begin a series at Houston. "Everything seems to be good," Gardenhire said. "Were hoping Houston." Athletics: Second baseman Nick Punto is still working through stiffness in his right hamstring that he strained Aug. 2. He is not close to resuming baseball activities and wont make the trip to Kansas City and Atlanta. ON DECK Twins: RHP Phil Hughes (11-8, 4.01 ERA), who snapped a three-game losing streak his last time out, faces the As for the 12th time in his career and second this season in the series finale. Athletics: RHP Jason Hammel (1-4, 7.15) tries to make it two straight wins after losing each of his first four starts following a July 4 trade from the Cubs. ' ' '
